Mutant And Proud
by FinalFantasyObsessive
Summary: Being Mutant and proud of it wasn't hard for some, unlike others. Erik X OC hints of Charles X OC
1. The Beginning Of Everything

Disclaimer: I do not own X-Men, I do own Laura and the Wilkes family as well as any other Ocs used in this fan fiction. Hope you enjoy! ^_^

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><p><span>Banbury, Oxfordshire, 1944<span>

"Help!" came the shrill cry of my younger sister. We'd been running to the air raid shelter when one of the walls of a nearby crypt had collapsed trapping my sister. I tried with all my might to help her. Tears blurred my vision.

"Hold on!" I called as I tried to push a wooden support beam out of the way, but it wouldn't budge. Frustration and panic took over me, I closed my eyes as I began again to try and push the beam away. The cries from my sister fuelled my efforts. That's when I felt it, a strange twinge in my head, that's when the beam moved away from my heads. But it was too late my sister lay dead underneath the rubble. Even so I didn't give up, I continued to try and get her out of there. Sirens blurred in the background of my mind. The beam moved again. A pair of hands pulled me away from the rubble.

"Anna! Laura!" someone shouted, I fought against the hands, but they wouldn't let go.

"No! Let go of me!" I screamed, my hands stretching for the rubble as my legs kicked against my captor. The beam moved towards me and I was dropped to the ground. I scrambled through the mud back to the rubble.

"Monster!" the voice cried again, I knew who it belonged to. My mother. I looked over my shoulder to see my mother in tears pointing at me accusingly. A couple of people stood around her in white coats.

"Vile demon! You did this! You killed her! Your own sister! Murderer!" she screeched, the words stung. The white coats grabbed me and began to drag me away. I fought against them as they lifted me towards their car.

"Mama!" I cried, trying to get free. She looked towards me, hatred radiated from her eyes. "Mama!"

"You're not my daughter." she stated coldly, before she turned round and walked away. A sharp knock to my head turned my world black.

I woke up in a completely white room. I tried to open the door, but it was locked. I began panicking as I whirled round the room banging on all the walls. There was no way out. I gave up and crawled into a corner bringing my knees to my chest. I felt so alone and unloved. After a while, a doctor entered the room followed by two nurses. They held me down as the doctor injected something into my arm, everything began to spin as they dragged me into another room.

For what seemed like weeks the doctor ran 'tests' on me, leaving me feeling sick and violated. One night after another session with the doctor I heard a commotion outside my room. I had long given up hope on any sort of rescue; my father and brothers were away at war, my mother had disowned me, my sister was dead and my grandfather was far too old to rescue me. The commotion ceased, the handle of the door began to move, I scrunched up into the corner. The door opened revealing and elderly man. I vaulted from the corner and into the arms of my grandpa.

"Grandpa!" I cried, bursting into tears. He picked me up, I clutched to his chest believing that if I let go he would vanish and I'd be back in my cell.

"You are safe my child." he whispered, I watched as he moved the gates without touching them. I didn't feel alone anymore. "No one will harm you ever again."

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><p><span>Westchester County, New York, 1944<span>

I woke with a start, I heard the distinct sound of a lock clicking, a door creaking open and footsteps on the squeaky wooden floorboards. A burglar? I grabbed my dressing gown and baseball bat before I quietly left my room to investigate. I hope I don't come face to face with an actual burglar. I tip-toed down the stairs trying to make as little noise as possible, the sounds were now coming from the kitchens, I opened the door to reveal…my mother? What was she doing down here?

"Mother? What are you...? I thought you were a burglar!" I said, lowering my baseball bat. She whirled round shutting the fridge door. What was she doing down here?

"I didn't mean to scare you darling. I was just getting a snack. Go back to bed." she said, walking over to me. There was definitely something wrong here, my mother would not come down into the kitchens especially not to make a snack. I stared at her intently trying to read her thoughts to see if my hunch was correct.

"What's the matter? Go on? Back to bed." she inquired, obviously alarmed at my intent stare, "I'll make you a hot chocolate."

"Who are you? And what have you done with my mother?" I said, walking closer to her, she started to back away from me, obviously knowing that I had figured everything out. Her thoughts were nothing like that of my mother's, her thoughts were more like that of someone my own age.

'My mother has never set foot in this kitchen, in her life. And she certainly never made me hot chocolate. Unless you count ordering the maid to do it.' I said telepathically, the woman seemed shocked at first, but then the form of my mother started to shift and change and before I knew it a young, blue-skinned girl was stood before me. So there were people other than me that had special abilities.

"You're not...scared of me?" she asked timidly, I shook my head smiling.

"I always believed I couldn't be the only one in the world. The only person who was different. And here you are." I said, she smiled. She knew she was safe around people like her. Even if I couldn't shape shift. "Charles Xavier."

"Raven." she introduced taking my outstretched hand shaking it.

"You're hungry and alone. Take whatever you want. We've got lots of food. You don't have to steal. In fact, you never have to steal again."

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><p><span>Poland, Auschwitz, 1944<span>

Mother clutched me close to her as we were marched into one of the many camps the Nazis had set up. They were for those who opposed the Nazi regime or for those who the Nazis deemed as weak for Germany. I looked around at the many people dressed in striped clothes working hard in the heavy rain, they all had one thing in common; a tattoo on their left arm, a number like a brand. They were treating us like cattle! We kept moving, mother whispered reassuring phrases to me, but it didn't help calm the dread that was building up inside me. A man adorned in Nazi regalia stood at the front of the marching crowd, directing people to the left and to the right. Mother clutched me tighter to her, but her hold on me was nothing compared to the man who separated us.

"Erik!" she cried, as she was pushed to the right by the crowd.

"Mama!" I shouted, scrambling in the mud, to get to her, but a gate separated us. Two guards tried to restrain me and take me away to the left side of the camp. I fought against the guards trying to reach the gate with my arms outstretched.

"Erik!" she cried once more, the gate began to bend towards me as the guards restraining me and I slid towards it.

"Mama!" I screamed, as two more guards came to help the struggling ones, but they couldn't restrain me either.

"Erik!" I reached out more dragging the guards with me. The gate bent more and for a second I thought I would be able to reach her, but that hope was crushed as another soldier hit me on the back of the head with a gun.

A couple of days later, I was taken to the office of Dr. Schmidt, rumours spread through out the camp that he was supposed to be Mengele, I hoped that was just simply a rumour and not true. The feeling of utter dread and fear came over me once again as I stood in front of a man who could easily have me killed within a second. He sat happily behind his desk eating some chocolate, I hadn't eaten properly in days and that was made more prominent as I stared hungrily at the bar that was left on the table. To the right of the chocolate was a coin and next to that was a small bell.

"Understand this, Erik...These Nazis. I'm not like them. Genes are the key, yes? But their goals? Blue eyes? Blond hair? Pathetic." he mused, sliding the chocolate towards me. "Eat the chocolate. It's good. Want some?"

"I want to see my mama" I replied, the man frowned slightly quickly putting the chocolate in a drawer. He moved the coin closer to me smiling or more like smirking.

"Genes are the key to the door leading into a new era, Erik. A new future for humanity. Evolution. You know what I mean? I'm not asking for much. A small coin, it's nothing compared to the huge gates. Isn't that right?" he stated, nodding at the coin on the desk. I looked between the coin and the doctor, maybe if I followed his orders then I would be able to see mother again. I brought my hands up towards the coin, trying to make it move like I had done with the gate. But it didn't move even when I concentrated more, it just wouldn't budge.

"I've tried, sorry Doctor. I cannot...I do not...it is impossible." I said, lowering my arms in defeat. The doctor raised his eyebrows and looked at me sceptically.

"The only thing I can say in favor of the Nazis is that their methods are producing results. I'm sorry, Erik." he said, before he reached for the ball and rang it. Two guards entered the room escorting my mother.

"Now this is what we will do. I count to three, and you move the coin." he explained as he pulled out a pistol from one of the drawers, clicked the safety off and aimed it at my mother. No! "If you do not move the coin, I'll pull the trigger. Do you understand?"

"One." I brought my hands up once again and tried to move the coin. But it just wouldn't move no matter how hard I concentrated. I look at mother and then the doctor. I couldn't let her die.

"Mama!" I cried, I just couldn't let her die, she was everything to me. I can't live without her.

"You can do it." she reassured, I looked at her. The fear was present in her eyes. I returned my gaze to the coin, it wasn't moving.

"Two." Panic started setting in, I focused more. It still wouldn't move. Tears started to sting my eyes as I looked at mother once more.

"It's alright. It's alright. It's alright!" she repeated, it brought more tears to my eyes as I concentrated more, but the coin just wouldn't move. I tried with all my might to move the damn coin but it just wouldn't move, tears blurred my vision and the pounding of my heart drowned out most of the noise around me, except for the doctor's three and the bang of the gun. I stopped focusing on the coin and stared down at the lifeless corpse of my mother. My body shook violently. Anger took over me.

"No!" I screamed, raising my arms as everything that was metal in the room swirled around in an invisible violent tornado leaving the room in complete and utter disarray. The helmets of the two guards began to shrink, they clawed at them, but within minutes their heads were crushed as they lay dead next to mother. The doctor stood behind his desk laughing manically at the chaos as the room we stood in and the adjoining room were completely trashed. My anger storm ended, I lowered my arms, tears streamed down my face.

"Unbelievable, Erik. We have opened your gift with anger." he mused, clapping a hand on my shoulder and leading me into the adjoining room. Medical equipment littered the floor and the giant steel tables had been bent out of shape by my powers. "Anger and pain. You and I are going to have a lot of fun."

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hope you enjoyed, im just so in love with Erik and X-men First Class! ^_^ Hehe I'd love any ideas/criticisms! ^_^ Hope Laura doesn't seem too Mary Sueish! ^_^


	2. Cheeky Telepaths And Swiss Banks

Disclaimer: You already know! ^_^

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><p><span>Oxford, England, 1962<span>

Charles' P.O.V

Raven and I had gone down the local pub, I had recently graduated from Oxford university and Raven had acquired a job as a waitress in a local restaurant. It was kind of our celebratory thing to go down to the pub, a normal thing to do for two very extra-ordinary people. I approached the bar where a very attractive blonde was stood. Maybe it was time to turn on the old Xavier charm. I scanned her mind, interesting a brandy drinker.

"Heterochromia." I said, gaining her attention straight away. She had the most amazing different coloured eyes I had seen.

"A gentleman would at least offer to buy me a drink first." she said smiling, I returned her smile before I turned to the barman to order drinks.

"Norman? A pint of bitter for me and a brandy for the lady, please." I said, he nodded before he set about getting the drinks.

"How did you know that?" she asked, shocked as Norman handed her, her drink. It is always a bonus when you are trying to pick up a girl to know the bartender of the bar you are in.

"A lucky guess. Name's Xavier. Charles Xavier. How do you do?" I introduced myself, she smiled.

"Amy." she said as she sipped some of her brandy, as I began to drink my pint.

"Heterochromia is in reference to your eyes, which I have to say are stunning. One green, one blue. It's a mutation. It's a very groovy mutation. I've got news for you, Amy. You are a mutant." I explained, though Amy didn't seem impressed at all, she seemed quite offended, but amused at the same time.

"First you proposition a girl and then you call her deformed. How is that seduction technique working for you?" she said, as she took a sip of her brandy once more and looked as though she was about to leave.

"I'll tell you in the morning." I chuckled, she smiled and became more interested in me. "No, seriously. You mustn't knock it. Mutation took us from single cells organisms to being the dominant form of reproductive life on this planet. Infinite forms of variation with each generation, all through mutation."

"Then, let's reclaim that word. Mutant and proud." she said, raising her glass before taking a drink I did the same. After a couple more minutes of chatting, I looked around the bar and noticed a very peeved of Raven walking over to the bar along with…oh no! When did Laura get here.

"Everything alright" Amy asked, I nodded before downing the rest of my pint. " Are you sure?"

"Yes, want another?" I answered, getting the attention of the bartender. I hope neither of them start anything and ruin this chance for me.

"A glass of red please." a familiar voice asked the bartender, I looked over to my right to see Laura standing there. "Charles"

"What are you doing?" I hissed, my eyes darting back to Raven to make sure she didn't try anything. Laura smiled innocently as she took her glass from Norman.

"Charles here was telling me that I'm like one of the first sea creatures that grew legs." Amy explained to Raven, who smiled. I turned around.

"Tiny bit sexier." I added, which made our little group start laughing. I drank some of my pint nervously, you can never be to careful when Raven and Laura team up. "I'm sorry this is my sister, Raven." I said introducing her to Amy to be interrupted by a cough from Laura. "And this is a friend, Laura."

"Hi." Raven said smiling, Amy smiled at her.

"Amy. And what are you studying?" she asked, what a question to ask.

"Waitressing." she replied, making it quite awkward between the both of them.

"Ah! What do you study Laura?" she asked, Laura smiled, she loved being asked that question.

"Politics." she replied sipping her wine, always red wine.

"So how did you and Charles meet?" she questioned, a mischievous smile plastered itself on Laura's face.

"On campus." I answered, Amy nodded her head. Please whatever you do Laura don't mention that you're my Ex.

"I was reading, he tried flirting with me, I hit him with the book, then he took me out for dinner." Laura explained, I smiled at the memory:

_I was walking towards one of the many buildings on campus, it was a beautiful summer's day when I spotted her. She sat on one of the benches in the courtyard reading 'To kill a Mockingbird' her dark black hair billowed around her in the light breeze. I walked over towards her before taking the seat next to her._

"_Any good?" I asked, she looked up from the book before placing a book mark in the page and closing it. _

"_Yes, have you read it?" she replied, smiling at me. She was beautiful._

"_No, any chance discussing it over some dinner?" I asked, she laughed a bit._

"_Are you always this forward when you meet a girl?" she questioned, I smirked._

"_Generally, if they're as pretty as you are." I answered, she giggle again lightly hitting me with the book._

"_You're relentless." she said, giggling. I laughed along with her._

"_So what do you study?" I asked, her eyes glittered at the question._

"_That's my favourite question. Politics."_

I was brought back to reality when Laura nudged me in the ribs, I looked at her as she pointed towards Raven. What had she done?

"Oh, look! You have heterochromia too." Amy exclaimed, that made no sense Raven didn't have…

"Sorry, what?" I asked, Amy pointed towards Raven.

"Well, look at her eye." she replied, I looked over at Raven who was smirking. Her eyes had changed colour, one was her actual colour of yellow and the other was blue. That was it she'd done that on purpose, I didn't mind them telling really embarrassing stories…well as long as they weren't that bad, but this had crossed the line.

"Right. Raven get your coat, please." I said, grabbing Raven by the arm and swiftly exiting the pub Laura followed us.

"Don't talk to me. You did that on purpose!" I hissed, Raven looked a bit saddened at the fact I was angry with her, Laura put a hand on my shoulder.

"Don't you think that's a bit harsh Charles?" she reasoned, trying to calm me down, but it wouldn't work.

"I did not!" Raven countered, I shrugged off Laura's hand, she sighed at our antics. We argued like actual siblings.

"Yes you did!" I retaliated, she rolled her eyes, sure it was a kid's response to something, but it was all I could think of.

"Why would I do it on purpose? You know I can't control it sometimes. If I'm stressed or I'm tired." she reasoned, I shook my head. It was done on purpose, she was jealous of Amy!

"You seem to be doing a perfectly good job of it right now." I argued, we glared at each other for a couple of minutes.

"Stop it you two!" Laura interjected, "You're acting like small children!"

"Mutant and proud! Or is that only the pretty mutations or invisible ones, like yours? But if you're a freak, better hide!" she argued, I could see she was close to tears.

"Raven." Laura whispered trying to calm her down now.

"You're being ridiculous. Look...look, I don't mean to sound like an old fart." I started before Raven cut me off.

"Which you are." she snorted, I glared at her which made her look away. I softened my gaze.

"Sometimes. But we talked about this, Raven. Small slip up is one thing, a big one does not bear thinking about." I reasoned with her, Laura nodded in agreement.

"What he's trying to say, is that a lot of people fear mutation. Sometimes we need to hide our gifts from the world." she said, bringing Raven in to a hug. "But they are nothing to be ashamed of. Especially yours, I wish I had the ability to shape shift!"

Raven smiled a bit at what Laura had said and we began walking down the cobbled street. Laura caught the heel of her shoe on one of the cobbles, causing her to fall. I caught her just before she hit the ground.

"Why do you insist on wearing those darn high heels?" I asked, she laughed. She loved wearing those things, which for the death of me I couldn't work it out.

"You never complained when we dated." she said giggling, I chuckled.

"Mutant and Proud? If only!" I heard Raven whisper to herself, Laura must have heard too because she also sighed.

'She's been a bit self-conscious as of late hasn't she.' Laura said telepathically, I nodded my head slightly.

'Yes, she has hasn't she. Why all of a sudden?' I replied, we continued walking down the street. It was getting cold, and I could see that it was getting to Laura, so like the gentleman I am I offered her my coat.

"Thanks." she murmured as she pulled it on, I looked behind and noticed that Raven had stopped, Laura was also looking towards her.

"Would you date me?" she asked, as she caught up to us, I looked at Laura she shrugged. I turned back to Raven who looked extremely serious.

"Of course I would. Any young man would be lucky to have you. You are stunning." I replied, motioning for us to carry on home, but she didn't move from where she was stood.

"Looking like this?" she said, I stopped walking away.

"I...you...what?" I questioned, looking back at her to see that she had reverted back to her actual form.

"Blue? You're my oldest friend." I replied, she shook her head.

"I'm your only friend." she snarled, Laura looked hurt for a moment before she shook her head.

"What about me?" she asked, Raven looked towards her.

"Excluding Exs." she snapped, Laura looked shocked for a minute before she looked towards me.

"Thank you, for that." I said, turning once again to walk back home. But Raven still wouldn't walk from where she was.

"Well?" she asked once again, is sighed, I looked over at Laura for moral support, but she shrugged.

'I don't know what to say.' she said. I faced Raven once more.

"I'm incapable of thinking of you that way. I feel responsible for you. Anything else would just feel wrong." I replied honestly, she shook her head. Obviously not the answer she wanted to hear.

"But what if you didn't know me?" she asked, walking over to us.

"Unfortunately I do know you. God! I don't know what's gotten into you lately. You're awfully concerned with your looks." I sighed, as I began walking again.

"If it makes you feel any better, if I was a man and I didn't know you, I'd date you." Laura reassured Raven as she brought her into a one armed hug as we walked down the streets. Thank God she was here to at least calm her down before we got home, well I thought that until I heard.

'You owe me one.' I laughed a little as Raven and Laura caught up with me, Laura smiled.

"What would I do without the two of you?" I mused, the two of them giggled.

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><p><span>Switzerland, 1962<span>

Erik's P.O.V

I sat on the small bed in my hotel room, glaring holes into the makeshift link map that was on the wall. Schmidt's face in the centre, I knew I was close to finally killing that monster. The coin he had forced me to move revolved round fingers, only a few more hours and I would have some answers.

I made my way towards the 'bank', briefcase in hand, a previous link had told me that Schmidt used this 'bank' once, so they must know where he is. I entered one of the offices of the bank, putting the briefcase on the table and sitting down. I opened the case and turned it round to the banker.

"Possession of this gold is illegal. Do you want me to call the police?" he threatened, he looked between me and the bars of Nazi gold.

"Let's not play this game." I said, the manger looked towards me and then he glanced at the gold once more.

"So where did you get if from?" he questioned, examining the gold closer.

"From my friends. They recommended I come to your bank." I explained, the man nodded.

"Understood. You know our terms, sir?" he asked, shifting in his chair slightly. I nodded my head.

"Yes. And you should know mine." I answered, the man's eyebrows raised in a silent questioning stare. "This gold is all that is left of my people. It was their property. Taken out of their teeth. This is blood money. And you can help me find the bastards responsible for it."

His hand shifted towards to the alarm button that could be found in every bank in the world. But his hand never touched the button, he was wearing a watch, a metallic watch. I pulled his arm away from the underside of the desk.

"Do not touch the alarm. I need a Schmidt. Klaus Schmidt. Where is he?" I questioned, as I rose from my seat and walked round the other side of the desk.

"Our clients leave no addresses. We do not…" he stuttered, fear clearly present in his eyes.

"Not a bank?" I asked sarcastically. He had metal fillings which I proceed to use my power on to open his mouth.

"Metal fillings, huh? Not gold. Worried that someone might steal them?" I sneered as I began pulling them out towards me, he groaned in pain.

"Argentina! Schmidt, in Argentina! Villa Gesell! I beg you!" he shouted, I focused more on the filling pulling it out and placing it down on the desk. The man looked at quite clearly very shocked and very scared.

"Thank you." I said, closing the briefcase and walking out towards the door. "I would love to kill you. So remember, if you warn him about me, I will find you."

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><p><span>Oxford, England, 1962<span>

Laura's P.O.V

"Nervous yet Charles?" I asked, as we entered the University grounds. Today was probably one of the biggest days of his life: his dissertation on Mutation and Genes and the day he would become a professor. He'd have to speak in front of a huge audience of well respected professors and scientists.

"No. Maybe a little." he replied, I clapped him on the shoulder as we entered the building.

"I'm sure everything will go alright." I re-assured him as he nervously rifled through his notes. Raven nodded in agreement. "You could always picture everyone in their underwear."

"Just do picture me in mine please." Raven added, Charles chuckled as he turned to walk towards the stage.

"Well I guess this is it." he said as he readied himself to go out and face the music. "Why didn't I just do politics like you"

"Because politics doesn't suit you, its overly complex and it is quite a bore." I answered, smiling as Raven and I walked off towards our seats. "Oh and Charles, just to let you know I've got my _special_ underwear on today."

I giggled at his cute shocked face, before a smirk plastered itself on his face.

"I'll keep that mind."

A couple of hours later

We walked out of the campus and towards Charles' favourite pub. Charles was visibly chuffed with himself and so he should be, it had gone smashingly well.

"I didn't have to picture anyone in their underwear." he said, smirking slightly. I laughed.

"Well that's good." I said, though something told me he wasn't telling me something.

"But I just couldn't get that image of you out of my head." he chuckled, my mouth gaped, trust him to think of that while talking about genes. I swatted him on the arm.

"So, how does it feel to be a professor?" Raven asked, steering the conversation out of the gutter. Charles frowned jokingly.

"Oh, don't call me that! You don't get to be called a professor unless you actually have a teaching position." he replied, Raven and I began to laugh.

"I know. But it suits you." she said, I nodded in agreement.

"She's right it definitely suits you Professor Xavier." I said laughing as he shook his head.

"Oh, don't say that! Do say lets go have a drink first." he said, as he put one arm around me and the other around Raven

"Let's go have a drink." Raven and I said in unison as the three of us started to laugh.

"Wonderful."

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hope you enjoyed! I couldn't remember if the hotel room scene with Erik was before going to the bank or after, if someone could let me know I'd appreciate it! I really want to see the film again, I absolutely loved it! Can't wait for it to be released on DVD. Erm any questions etc are welcome! ^_^ Ciao!


	3. Not Alone

Disclaimer: You already Know! ^_^

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><p><span>Villa Gesell, Argentina<span>

Erik's P.O.V

I entered the bar, there were only three other people in the place excluding myself; the bartender and two men sat drinking. I slowly walked over to the bar and ordered myself some beer.

"German beer?" I asked, him he nodded.

"Of course it's the best." one of the men behind me exclaimed I turned around and smiled raising my glass. I stood up and walked over towards the two of them.

"You are German?" I asked, they nodded. I smirked as I sat down.

"I am a tailor. Have been my whole life. My father sewed the best costumes in Dusseldorf." he answered, I smiled leaning back in my chair.

"My are parents are from Dusseldorf." I said, the man looked intrigued, like anyone would if they knew someone that someone they met for the first time knew.

"What are their names?" he asked, I smiled looking down at my glass, before I looked at the man once more.

"They had no names." I explained, the men knew what I was getting at and looked very uneasy. "Their names were taken by...pig farmers and tailors."

No on said anything instead we all picked up our glasses and began drinking, looking between each other. I turned my left arm over showing the tattoo I had gotten from my time inside Auschwitz. We all put down our glasses, and within a couple of minutes the man nearest me brought out a knife and tried to stab me with it. I caught the knife and held his hand down to the table. I brought the knife to eye level reading the inscription on the blade.

"Blood and honour." I said, both of them looked nervously at each other. "Which would you prefer to lose first?"

"We only carried out orders." the man reasoned, I shook my head, the barman moved away from the bar.

"Blood it is then." I said, plunging the knife into his hand. He screamed, the bartender pulled out a gun and aimed it at me. I turned the gun so that it was aimed at the other man and then pulled the trigger. He fell down to the floor and the bartender once again aimed for me. I pulled the knife out of the man's hand and threw it at the bartender killing him. Then I pulled it back towards us and stabbed the man's hand once more.

"What...Who are you?" the man asked terrified.

"Let's just say I'm Frankenstein's monster." I replied standing up and running a hand through my hair and drinking the rest of my beer. I noticed a picture hanging on the wall near the counter of the bar which showed Schmidt in Miami. "And I'm looking for my creator."

I levitated the gun up into my hand and shot the man, I looked back at the picture once more before I left the bar readying myself for the trip to Miami.

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><p><span>Oxford, England.<span>

Charles' P.O.V

After downing a reasonably large amount of beer, basically a couple of vases as Laura's grandfather would put it, I was once again at the bar. I looked around noticing Laura and Raven dancing away in a huge crowd of people. They were both laughing away, they'd probably also had one too many, but we were celebrating so who really cared. I looked to my left to see a pretty brunette, she looked as though she was looking for me, but for the life of me I didn't know why, maybe it was my dashing good looks.

"I really need your help." she said, I looked at her confused.

"All right." I replied smiling, she rolled her eyes.

"The kind of mutations that you were talking about in your thesis. I need to know if they may have already happened, in people alive today?" she asked, why would she ask something like that? I decided it best to read her mind to see if she was either a mutant or that she'd seen mutants. It turned out to be the latter; a woman who could turn into diamond, a man who could create tornados, and a red-skinned man who disappear and appear at will. "Professor? I think we should just talk when you're sober. Do you have any time tomorrow?" Though I was drunk, I wasn't completely out of my mind, but spacing out while reading her mind would have given her the impression that I was totally gone with the wind.

"Something tells me you already know the answer to your question. This is very important to me, and if I can help you, I will do my utmost." I replied, as Norman handed me another pint. She nodded, before she turned to go.

"Thank you." she said, before she left, I walked over towards Laura and Raven, who'd now found a table.

"Who was that?" Laura asked, as I sat down.

"Agent Moira MacTaggert, she needs our help." I answered, she nodded drinking whatever the hell she'd ordered.

"And when you mean our help, she really only asked for you." she added laughing, I chuckled.

"Yes, but where would I be without the two of you?" I asked, the two of them laughed. "Shall we dance?"

"How can I say no." she said, as she took my hand.

The next day

I stood explaining to some of the CIA executives about mutation, though everyone except Moira, and a man sat at the very back, and of course Laura and Raven. I finished explaining and sat down in my seat next to Laura.

"MacTaggert, you really think that some crackpot scientist is gonna make me believe in sparkly dames and vanishing men?" Director McCone said sarcastically. "You just bought yourself a one way ticket back to the typing pool. This meeting is over."

Moira stood up, but I ushered her to sit down, I looked at Laura.

'I told you they wouldn't believe you didn't I' I shook my head.

'They need some actual evidence that we do exist.' she rolled her eyes.

'And then what will they do? Experiment on us?' I sighed and cut the telepathic connection.

"Uh...please. Sit down, Agent MacTaggert. I didn't really expect you to believe me, given that all you'd think about during my presentation was what sort of pie they were serving in the commissary." I said, many of the people there looked shocked, except for the McCone and Stryker. "It's apple pecan."

"Show off." murmured Laura.

"I haven't been entirely honest with you, love. I'm sorry. You see, one of the many spectacular things my mutation allows me to do, is that I can read your mind." I explained, they all looked at me sceptically.

"I've seen this before at a magic show. Agent Stryker scoffed, Laura shook her head.

'Are you going to help me out here?'

'Fine' she sighed and levitated Agent Stryker's coffee cup over to her.

"Magnets and strings. Are you gonna ask us to think of a number between one and ten?" Stryker said sarcastically.

"No, Agent Stryker. Although I could ask you about your son, William, who you were thinking about. Which is very nice, but I think I'd rather ask you about the Jupiter missiles, America currently placing in Turkey." I said, this man was testing my patience, everyone in the room looked completely shocked and then very angry. Great what had I just done?

"He's a Goddamn spy!" exclaimed McCone standing up and pointing at me accusingly. "You brought a Goddamn spy into this facility!" looking directly at Moira. Everyone began arguing, until Raven stood up and changed form into her original form and then changed once more so she looked like Stryker. Everyone looked shocked, Raven hen went back into her own form and Laura high-fived her.

"How's that for a magic trick!" I said smirking, no one answered for a while.

"Best I've ever seen." the man at the back said, everyone looked at him weirdly. Seriously what did this guy do at the CIA?

Laura's P.O.V

We exited the small office, it had gone rather…interestingly well. Even though we'd been accused of being spies and possibly given ourselves our own room in a lovely lab. Director McCone and the random man who I had no idea who he was or what he did, were further down the corridor, although they were having a private conversation Charles and I could hear them quite well.

"I want them out of here. And locked down until I can figure out what to do." McCone hissed, I looked over at Charles.

'I told you so didn't I. All they'd ever want to do is experiment on us.'

'Come on, you don't know that. They need our help.'

"My facility is off site. I'll take 'em." the other man whispered, McCone nodded.

'Oo an off site facility I'd love to know what they do there.'

'Trust me, I'm sure they won't do anything to harm us. And if they do, they've got me to answer to.'

'Fine, just if anything does happen…'

'Laura, don't worry about,' he hugged me reassuringly. 'I'd never put you or Raven in danger.'

'Thanks.'

We were then ushered out into the parking lot of the building, McCone and Stryker went back to work and Agent MacTaggert was getting a car, and the other CIA man waited with us.

"I've always known that there were people like you out there. I've been the laughing stock of this agency for years, but I knew it! You're gonna love my facility." he said, giddily, yay we get stuck with the UFO enthusiast! I shook my head.

"That's gonna have to wait." Charles said, he smiled knowingly towards me and Raven.

"Why?" he asked, and cue Charles with an explanation and a bit of showing off to go with it.

"Agent MacTaggert has a lead on Sebastian Shaw, and if we don't move now, apparently we're gonna lose him." he explained leaving the man more confused, since Moira was nowhere near us.

"What?" he questioned, Charles' smiled, but before he could answer the man, Raven did it for him.

"Not only can he read minds, he can communicate with them as well." she answered, I nodded as Moira pulled up.

"Is that why you two were acting strangely in the meeting?" he asked, I looked at Charles, who raised his eyebrow at me.

"Sometimes you forget where you are when you have a conversation telepathically, I explained, as Raven got into the car.

"And Moira and I have just had a lovely conversation." Charles explained as Moira got out of the car.

"Yes. We did." she said smiling, the man looked absolutely astounded.

"That is incredible! But...but I cannot take you anywhere else without permission from upstairs." he said sternly, Moira got back into the car as I went round to the other side.

"Would you like to see one more magic trick?" Charles asked, smirking.

"Okay." the man said. Charles looked at me, as I got in to the back seat of the car sliding into the middle seat next to Raven.

"Get in the car." Charles, said as he came over to the side I'd just got in.

"Good idea." he agreed while getting in the car, and we set off for wherever this Shaw man was.

Erik's P.O.V

The Yacht was in sight as I saw through the water, today was the day I would exact revenge on Schmidt. I checked if it was clear before I started to climb up the ladder onto the boat. I readied myself to face the monster that had tortured me for so long, I rounded the corner to find a very young man…but the Schmidt I knew must have been nearly eighty by now this can't be the same man. With him were a very attractive blonde woman and a dark haired man.

"Ah Erik." Schmidt greeted, smirking. "Thinking I should be much older? A perk of my mutation. You see I absorb energy and I can use that energy to reverse aging."

He was a mutant! Then why in hell had he tortured me, one of his own kind?

"I'll kill you!" I yelled, as I start to focus on any metal there was around to try and kill hi with. But then this intense pain took over me, I couldn't focus and dropped to my knees clutching my head. I looked up at Schmidt who's grin had grown wider as the blonde came over to stand next to him, she stared at me intently increasing the pain in my head.

"You see Erik, its handy to keep very interesting company." Schmidt sneered, the pain kept increasing, and that's when I thought I was surely done for. If the pain didn't stop my head would explode and I'd be dead and I wouldn't have exacted my revenge! But then the blonde's attention was taken away from me.

"There's another telepath." she said, Schmidt nodded. It was now or never I had to take my chance and I launched myself at Schmidt only to be totally taken by surprise and flung overboard by something that materialized as soon as I was a couple of inches away from Schmidt. There were several hips around when I emerged from the water, but they were soon destroyed by several medium sized tornados.

Charles' P.O.V

We were on one of the many CIA ships, one of the yachts was our target. I began trying to focus to link to the mind of Sebastian Shaw. I'd managed to link with his mind, when another mind pushed me out of Shaw's.

"I've lost Shaw. I've los...I've lost Shaw! The...there's something blocking me. This has never happened to me before! I think there's someone like me on that ship." I exclaimed, Laura rolled her eyes.

"I'll try." she said, she then began to focus, but the same thing happened to her. "Ouch, what a bitch!"

"Like you?" Moira inquired, Laura nodded.

"Um...I'm sorry. A telepath." I explained.

"A bitch of a telepath!" Laura added, I chuckled at her antics

"Play nicely." I said, she shook her head, pulling her jacket closer to herself. "This is incredible! I could actually feel her inside my mind. I'm very sorry, but I don't think I'm gonna be much help to you tonight. You're on your own."

"I can't link with them either." Laura added, then out of nowhere several medium sized tornados began destroying the smaller boats. "Mutant?"

"I'm not sure. Its possible, you're grandfather talked of those mutants who could control elements." I answered, Laura nodded her brow furrowing.

"Yes, but he never spoke of anyone creating tornados. But it's more than likely a mutant." Laura concluded, I nodded in agreement. After the boats were destroyed, Shaw's yacht was attacked by it's anchor.

"Another mutant." Laura reasoned.

Erik's P.O.V

I watched the ships being destroyed and it gave me an idea, every boat has an anchor, a metal anchor. I focused on it and brought it up out of the water before I proceeded to drag it through the hull of the boat, this was sure to kill Schmidt. After a while the boat began to sink, maybe I had succeeded that's when I sensed it a sub! Damn it I'm not losing him again! I focused on the sub I tried to stop it, but I couldn't instead I was being dragged by it.

Laura's P.O.V

"Charles, there's someone else out there. In the water." I said as I looked over the side of the boat, spotting a man being dragged through the water.

"I know, I think he's trying to stop the submarine that was just launched." Charles stated as he began going down the decks.

"What are you doing?" I asked concerned, he shook his head.

"He's like us, and if keeps a hold of that sub, he's going to drown." he stated, as he reached the bottom deck, he turned to look at me.

"Just be careful and don't die." I said, he smiled and then he jumped over the side. Raven came running down the stairs towards me.

"What's he doing?" she asked, looking over the side.

"Saving someone he doesn't know. Again." I replied, shaking my head, he'll never change.

Erik's P.O.V

I was dragged underneath another boat, which meant I had to go under the water as the sub began descending down further. A splash in the water took some of my concentration away from the submarine. A couple more minutes and someone attacked me from behind. I began struggling until I heard a voice in my head.

'You can't. You'll drown. You have to let go. I know what this means to you, but you're going to die. Please! Erik, calm you mind.'

I tried to struggle again, but all the struggling was using my oxygen up and I was dragged to the surface. My attacker was a dark-haired man who was about my age. He motioned for me to swim towards the boat. As we got onto the deck of the boat we both collapsed onto the floor. I didn't realise how exhausted I was. A blonde girl wrapped a towel around the man who saved my life, but lost me my shot at killing Schmidt. A towel was wrapped around my shoulders, I looked up into the deep blue eyes of a beautiful black haired woman.

"You must be cold." she said, I nodded as I wrapped the towel round me more. I looked over at the man who had saved me.

"Who are you?" I asked, he smiled.

"My name's Charles Xavier." he answered, then he gestured towards the woman on deck. "This is my sister Raven Darkholme and my friend Laura Wilkes." They both smiled at me. But I had to know how in the world he was talking to me in my mind.

"You were in my head! How did you do that?" I asked or rather demanded.

"Never ask him that." the woman who Charles had introduced as Laura said.

"You have your tricks, I have mine. I'm like you. Just calm your mind!" Charles answered, so he was like me!

'Yeah he's like you, as are Raven and I.' Laura's voice said in my mind.

'And you say I'm a show-off.' Charles' voice cut in. I looked between Charles and Laura.

"I thought I was alone." I murmured, they all shook their heads.

"You're not alone. Erik, you're not alone."

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><p><span>Author's notes:<span>

Hope you enjoyed! ^_^ chapters 4 and 5 are in the works already any questions or ideas or criticisms etc would be handy! ^_^


	4. Kinky!

Disclaimer: You already know! ^_^

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><p><span>Laura's P.O.V<span>

We arrived at what the man had said was his off-site facility, a large white building surrounded by hardly any other buildings and the buildings near this facility were more than likely CIA owned buildings. We entered the building, into a large room where a large model of some aircraft that looked liked it had come from the future hung from the ceiling.

"Welcome to my facility. My mission has been to investigate the application of paranormal powers in military defence." the man explained, as he pointed to various things in the room before stopping in front of the aircraft.

"Or offence." Erik interjected, I held back a laugh at the man's reaction. Charles looked at me sternly, in retaliation I stuck out my tongue.

'Very childish Laura!'

'Live a little Charlie-boy!' he shook his head, he never did like that nickname.

"I'll never get rid of that nickname will I?" he asked, everyone except myself and Raven looked at him weirdly. I shook my head.

"Nope." I replied smiling innocently at him. Raven started giggling, Charles huffed before returning his attention to the CIA man.

"Err, right. This guy, Shaw-Schmidt, whatever you wanna call him. He's working with the Russians. We might need your help to stop him." he said, looking very serious. Charles' eyes brightened at the thought of helping out the CIA.

"Marvellous. So are we to be the CIA's new mutant division, yes?" he asked clearly intrigued.

"Something like that." the man murmured as Charles began walking around the room in utter fascination.

"Is he always like this?" Erik whispered, I nodded smiling at Charles' actions.

"Always has been, always will be." I replied, laughing which drew Charles' attention he smiled.

'Glad you're getting along with him. You two are more alike than you know.' I sighed.

'How are we alike?' he shook his head.

'You'll just have to find out for yourself won't you.'

"Cheeky telepath!" I murmured, Erik raised an eyebrow. "Sorry telepathic conversation with the cheeky so and so over there."

"Hey!" Charles exclaimed, "You're the cheeky one!"

"I resent that!" I retaliated, "You're the one who reads everyone's minds."

"I…I don't read them all the time." he answered shaking his head. "You read them more than I do!"

"I do not!" I exclaimed, Raven shook her head.

"Children stop this arguing!" she said sternly, we both huffed like petulant children. The CIA man looked at us as if we had grown another head. Charles chatted with the man for a while, Raven wandered round for a while looking around the place. I took the chance to find out more about Erik.

"So I'm guessing your mutation has something to do with metal." I said, starting some little chit-chat. He nodded as he unclasped my bracelet, without using his hands, and brought it over to his hand.

"Yes, exactly. I can bend metal to my will." he answered as he inspected my bracelet.

"It was from my father, before he was sent off to war." I explained, remembering my father's smile as he handed it to me. "He never returned home."

"I'm sorry." Erik whispered, I shook my head.

"It's alright." I reassured, he nodded.

"So what's your power?" he asked quickly changing the subject. I smiled.

"Other than telepathy," I answered, moving a book that was on a table a couple of feet away towards us. "I'm telekinetic."

"A power similar to my own, but you can move anything." Erik said, clearly impressed. I nodded. Was this what Charles meant by we were not so different?

"Your mutation is still, as Charles would put it, groovy." I said giggling, he chuckled.

Charles' P.O.V

As everyone was getting to know each other, well Laura and Erik getting to know each other, another person entered the room. He was quite tall, probably younger than Laura, Erik and I, he wore a lab coat and thick framed glasses.

"Hank, these are the special new recruits I was telling you about." the man said to the new person, "This is Hank McCoy, one of our most talented young researchers."

"How wonderful! Another mutant already here." I exclaimed, as I went over to shake Hank's hand. "Why didn't you say?"

"Say what?" the CIA man asked, not again!

"Because you don't know." I concluded, "I am so, so terribly sorry."

"Really Charles, stop outing people!" Laura reprimanded, I turned round shrugging my shoulders and grinning innocently. "Remember the last time you did that to someone."

"Sorry." I murmured.

"Hank?" the CIA man questioned, Hank looked down at the floor before he looked back up.

"You didn't ask, so I didn't tell." he answered sheepishly. Raven took an immediate interest in Hank.

"So your mutation is what? You're super smart?" she asked, appearing by my side.

"I'll say. Hank here graduated Harvard at the age of fifteen." I said turning towards Raven she looked very impressed, Laura and Erik joined our little group. I was sharply hit on the back of the head. "Ouch what was that for?"

"He could have explained it himself." Laura reprimanded, I sulked playfully, giving her puppy dog eyes. She then hugged me. Works every time!

"I wished that's all it was." Hank said sheepishly, everyone looked at him awaiting for him to show off his mutation.

"You're among friends now, Hank. You can show off." I said, he smiled. There was a cough from beside me with I'm sure a whispered 'Says the biggest show-off of them all.' before Raven and Laura began giggling and Erik chuckled. I shook my head. Our attention returned to Hank who was removing his shoes and socks. His feet rapidly expanded, to those you would expect to find a wild beast to have. He then jumped up onto the model of the aircraft gripping onto it with his feet.

"Wow" Raven said in awe as she walked over towards Hank. I looked over at Laura.

"As you would say…" she started, smiling.

"Groovy." I finished, I then ushered Erik and Laura out of the room to follow the CIA man, to learn more about what they knew about Shaw, leaving Raven to learn more about our knew friend Hank.

"I never knew he was a mutant! Astounding!" the CIA man mused, I shook my head.

"Some don't want to be found." Laura murmured, the CIA man looked shocked.

"Why not?" the man asked, she shook her head.

"Laura could you not do this now." I hissed, Laura's eyes were filled with anger and sadness.

"Because of institutes like this experiment on them." she finished, I looked away from her. What had happened to her when she was young was…was absolutely horrible! Her own mother subjected her to that torture.

"She's right." Erik murmured, he too had suffered because of his mutation.

"I'm sorry, I need air." Laura said as she began to walk away.

"Laura." I whispered, "Shall we do this later once everyone's settled?"

"Sure, I've got reports to file." the CIA man said, "Your rooms are through this door.""Thank you." I said as he walked away. I sighed I'd have to go find Laura and make sure she's alright.

"What happened to her?" Erik asked, should I tell him? He'd find out someday.

"You're better asking her, it's quite…complicated and well very personal." I explained, he nodded. He himself had quite the dark past just like Laura did, though his was much more darker than anyone could imagine. "If you'll excuse me, I better go see if she is alright."

Erik nodded before he disappeared through the door that the man had explained was where our rooms for the next couple of months were. Hopefully this mess would sort out within a couple of months and we could go back to our normal lives, well what people would assume were normal, without the fear of this man named Shaw. I walked out the doors that Laura had previously stormed out of and then through the next set of doors that led outside. I hadn't noticed how late it was until I saw the burnt orange sky, just a few feet further down the steps sat Laura. I took a seat next to her and put an arm round her shoulders, she leant her head over so that it was leaning on top of my shoulder.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, she sniffled a bit obviously she had been crying.

"Better." she mumbled, I sighed.

'You really aren't are you?' her head flopped down before she looked up at me. Her eyes were red, but not the puffy red they'd been when she first explained what had happened to her. 'Would I ever let anything or anyone harm you?' she shook her head. I hugged her, stroking her hair, like they way I used to do when we were a couple.

"Come on. Let's go back inside, it's getting cold." I suggested helping her up, she smiled up at me.

"Thanks, Charlie-boy." she giggled, at least she'd cheered up now. I proceeded to tickle her, to which I received a play hit on the head.

Erik's P.O.V

The parting words Charles had spoken had struck a chord in me. Could she have suffered like I did? She'd obviously seemed distressed at this whole facility.

"_Because of institutes like this experiment on them."_ she'd said, had she been experimented on? I'd never heard of any other people that had been experimented on…then again I'd only just found out I wasn't the only mutant. It was a relief to know I wasn't the only one who was 'different' from everyone else in the planet, but I wasn't about to play happy families with these people, I had one goal and one goal only. Kill Schmidt.

I walked back through to the room we'd only just been in, to find the young boy called Hank and Raven, having what seemed like a date. I stopped mid-step to make sure I wasn't about to walk in on something that was better left private. Raven moved closer to Hank.

"Go ahead. Take the blood." she said, it echoed a bit in the cavernous room. Exactly what were these to doing…was this the new kind of dating? Taking blood of the person you're on a date with? Hank then proceeded to take Raven's blood.

"Sorry. Did I hurt you?" Hank asked concerned, Raven just looked at him. I looked down at my watch…damn I couldn't stand here forever. I cannot stand their idle chit-chat either. Screw it, if I walk in on them I walk in on them, I've already heard all their weird kinky date chit-chat. I started to walk towards the door on the other side of the room. Raven had begun to lean in for a kiss by the time I was walking passed them.

"Kinky!" I exclaimed, I just couldn't help myself from saying something to this utterly weird couple. They both quickly separated from each other, looking alarmed at my presence. "By the way, if I looked like you, I wouldn't change a thing." And with that I headed for the door, with Shaw's file, that I had 'retrieved' from one of the rooms I'd been in before. I headed for the exited, freedom from whatever plans these CIA agents were planning, when the darn telepath stopped me in my tracks.

"You're leaving already?" Laura asked concerned, I turned round to look at her. Her eyes were red as if she'd been crying, why was I concerned over someone I'd only just met? There was just something about her, that made you feel for her.

"From what I know about you, I'm surprised you managed to stay this long." Charles added, looking I guess disappointed. He moved towards me, leaving Laura next to the doors. Had he been rumbling through my memories and thoughts?

"What do you know about me?" I asked coldly, his gaze turned stern, Laura on the other hand seemed more concerned.

"Everything?" he replied, simply. I gritted my teeth.

"Then you'll know to stay out of my head." I hissed, turning to leave once more only to be stopped once more.

"I'm sorry, Erik. But I've seen what Shaw did to you. I felt your agony. I can help you." he explained, I looked back at him. His eyes shone with concern and sadness, even Laura looked saddened.

"Charles." she whispered, walking towards us, but Charles waved her off, stopping her from approaching us.

"I don't need your help." I said through gritted teeth. Charles shook his head.

"Don't kid yourself. You needed my help last night. It's not just me you're walking away from. Here you have the chance to be part of something much bigger than yourself. I won't stop you leaving. I could, but I won't." Charles all but yelled, turning to walk back to the building.

"Shaw's got friends. You could do with some." I said, before I heard the tell-tale click of the door shutting. I began to walk once again.

"You know, we all need someone sometimes. Even those who believe they're better off alone." Laura said, I turned back round to face her. She'd walked further down the path.

"You're better off without me." I murmured, she shook her head, her eyes filled with determination.

"You said it yourself. Shaw's got friends." she explained, I held back a smirk at the way she'd twisted my words back at me. "You'd also benefit with having some."

She then walked back towards the building and I once again walked away. Where I was going I had no clue.

A Couple of Days later

Charles' P.O.V

"Hank turned that radar installation into a transmitter." the CIA man explained, as he pointed out towards the weird spherical object in the garden. "It's designed to amplify brain waves, so you it could enhance your telepathic powers. Help us find other mutants for our division." I nodded, I knew this wouldn't sit well with Laura, however it was all in the effort to fight Shaw and I'm sure by now she hated him as much as the rest of us, she'd seemed to have grown fond of Erik…though he was nowhere to be found.

"What if they don't want to be found by you?" I looked towards the door to find Erik, when had he come back. And just over his shoulder I spotted a happy Laura.

"Erik! You decided to stay." I exclaimed, he smirked at my surprise.

'When did he get back?' I asked.

'Just now.' she answered smiling.

"If a new species is being discovered, it should be by its own kind. Charles and I find the mutants. No suits." he stated firmly, if he'd have seen the look on Laura's face when he hadn't mentioned her, he would have run a mile.

"Excuse me! What about me?" she exclaimed swatting Erik on the back of the head. He rubbed one of his hands over the place where she'd hit him.

"Sorry. You're welcome to join." he added, she nodded appreciatively.

"Good." she added smiling and giggling. She could uplift a mood in a second…and then worsen even quicker.

"First of all, that's my machine out there. Second of all, much more importantly, this is Charles's decision." the man said matter of factly, Erik looked at me, now whether to choose what I thought was right and probably get kicked off the property or just go along with the CIA man? "Charles is fine with the CIA being involved. Isn't that right?"

"No. I'm sorry, but I'm with Erik. We'll find them alone." I stated earning a very elated squeal out of Laura, who basically ran over and hugged me.

"I knew you'd see it our way." she said, she then ran out of the room more than likely to find Raven.

"What if I say no." the man asked sceptically, oh we had forgotten we were about to use CIA technology without involving them in the actual using of the technology.

"Then good luck using your installation without me." I answered as I stood up and walked over to Erik. "And I assure you if you don't allow us to use your technology, you'll have to face a very, **very **angry woman."

With that we left the stunned man and walked out towards Hank's machine, at the end of the corridor Raven and Laura were waiting for us.

"So are we on our own in the finding of the other mutants?" Laura asked, Raven looked extremely intrigued, though I doubted whether I should bring her along…Laura could handle herself against mutants that could turn on us and use their powers on us. But I didn't want Raven in any situation that could cause her serious harm.

"Yes, no CIA suits involved." Erik replied triumphantly, Raven and Laura smiled broadly as we left the building towards the garden in which Hank's machine was situated. Hank was waiting for us just outside the spherical building, he ushered us all inside, where a lot of computers buzzed in the background and in the centre was a kind of helmet that was hooked up to the computers by a lot of wires.

"I uh...call it Cerebro." Hank said nervously as he began checking the computers, what a clever name.

"You...?" I laughed, Laura also caught on.

"Ingenious name!" she exclaimed as she looked at all the various screens and wires occasionally getting in the way of Hank.

"As in the Spanish for brain." Hank finished, we both nodded, he smiled nervously.

"Yes." I said, as I inspected the weird helmet in the centre of the room.

"Okay. So the electrodes connect Charles to the transmitter on the roof." Hank began to explain, everyone listened to him intently. "When he picks up a mutant, his brain sends a signal through a relay. And then the coordinates of their location is printed out here."

Erik looked rather sceptical, but that was expected for part of his life he'd been experimented on by a total psycho. However Laura had also been experimented on as a child and she didn't seemed to be disturbed at all then again she trusted me more than Erik did, she probably trusts me more than anyone ever has or ever will.

"You designed this?" Raven asked, she seemed so…infatuated with Hank. Most likely because he was like her, he wanted to hide a part of his mutation, he wanted to be accepted into society like she did.

"Yeah." he answered smiling sheepishly at her. Laura nudged me in the ribs, she was smirking a bit with her eyebrow raised.

'What a lovey-dovey couple.' a chuckled quietly at her remark, though neither Hank nor Raven noticed anything.

"You never walked in on them on their 'special' date." Erik whispered, we all tried to retain our laughter, though I'm sure they still wouldn't have noticed. After a couple more minutes of some chatter and more explanation of the workings of Cerebro, I stepped up to the stand in which the helmet was placed, and put it on my head.

"What an adorable lab rat you make, Charles." Erik said sarcastically, Laura, Erik and Raven stood in front of me as Hank moved around checking all the equipment once again.

"Don't spoil this for me, Erik." I stated, he simply just smirked.

"No. I've been a lab rat. I know one when I see one." he said as he leaned against the railing in front of me. I would have shook my head, but Cerebro limited movement of my head.

"This could have been a great chance to draw whiskers on you face." Laura giggled.

"Like that time he fell asleep…" Raven started before she cut herself off with a round of giggles. God they'd never forget that night!

"What happened?" Erik inquired clearly intrigued.

"Well, he fell asleep while he was studying for his exam and well I decided I draw a giant moustache a goatee on his face." Laura explained, before everyone began laughing. After everyone composed themselves, Hank began checking all the equipment once again.

"Okay. Great." Hank said, as he began adjusting Cerebro. "Are you sure we can't shave your head?"

"Don't touch my hair!" I exclaimed, Hank nodded sadly before he went back to the computers behind me.

"You've got to admit, his hair is quite sexy." I'm sure I heard Laura whisper to Raven. But then I found myself seeing millions of people in a large white room. The sudden jolt of people's minds buzzing around in my head, I lurched forward grabbing the railing in front of me. Everyone looked concerned, thinking something had gone wrong and I was in danger. But I wasn't, it was so amazing I could see all these people, people like us, other mutants.

"Are you okay?" Laura asked, I looked up at the three in front of me and smiled.

"There are so many, just like us." I replied, she smiled as did the others. Hank's footsteps began pacing from one side to the other side of the sphere as he busily checked all the computers and read outs. After a couple of minutes we already had a list of mutants and their locations. Our mission was about to begin.

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><p><span>Author's notes: <span>

Hi! Very sorry I haven't updated in well basically forever, I've been under a lot of work recently, still got a lot to do! And I wanted to make sure all the details were ironed out and everything if you spot anything that is incorrect please tell me! Erm well I hope you enjoyed the next chapter is still under the works, I'm not entirely sure whether I should go up to the point where they go to Russia or just before that point were all the mutants are socialising. Any ideas/criticisms/ questions are all welcome! Ciao! ^_^


	5. Strip Clubs

Disclaimer: You already know! ^_^

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><p><span>Laura's <span>

"So exactly where are you meeting this…Angel Salvadore?" I asked, as I read through the list of mutants that had been printed out. Erik was packing some clothes into a small bag, Charles was still out using Cerebro.

"A strip club why?" he replied, as he carefully folded one of his turtlenecks. Seriously they were meeting someone in a strip club!

"A strip club seriously!" I exclaimed, placing the list down on a cabinet. He quirked an eyebrow at me. "What?"

"You seem to resent the idea of Charles and I asking a mutant who so happens to be a stripper. Still have feelings for Charles?" he inquired, I shook my head.

"No, he's a friend that's it. We may have dated once before, but that's in the past now." I replied, he still seemed sceptical, or he was thinking of another reason. His packing was forgotten as he began walking towards where I stood.

"Then, if it's not Charles, why don't you want us to ask the help of this girl?" he asked, great…what was I going to say? I just couldn't blurt out that I fancied the pants off of him…damn it! Maybe I could just run out the door, I started backing away towards the door. Thank god he wasn't a telepath!

"I don't mind her being recruited but why couldn't you just meet her somewhere else?" I answered, I reached the door by then, but as my hand reached for the handle it came straight off and was thrown across the room. I looked over at Erik who was now mere inches away from me.

"I'm not even a telepath and I can see that's a blatant lie. What's the truth?" he asked, he was now extremely close to me. I looked up into his lovely little blue eyes…damn it!

"Erik…" I whispered, looking down at the floor. It was now or never. I looked back up at him. "It's you."

"What about me?" he asked, though that smile and twinkle in his eyes told me he knew what I was about to say.

"I'm…I'm falling for you, god you're just so…handsome, mysterious, sexy…" I blurted out, my face probably turning red, I was cut off by him kissing me. His arms found my waist and my hands tangled themselves into his, considerably shorter than Charles', hair. We were interrupted by the nosiest man alive, yes Charles began knocking on the door.

"Erik, are you ready? The car is outside." he asked, as he knocked once again. I rested my head on Erik's chest.

'Always shows up when you don't want him to.'

'Heh, well I guess that's my cue to leave. Oh and don't worry about the strip club, I've got someone far more beautiful than any of those strippers could hope to be.'

He then kissed the top of my head, picked up his bag and manoeuvred the handle back onto the door. We then walked out of the room where Charles was waiting patiently. He quirked an eyebrow at me.

'What?'

'Nothing, you just seem…more happy…'

'I'm happy all the time.'

'No but something seems different…'

'And that's supposed to mean what?'

"Hate to interrupt your little telepathic conversation, but we've got to go Charles." Erik stated turning back towards the two of us and bringing us out of our little inner conversation. I hadn't realised that Erik had moved further down the corridor then again when Charles and I had these little conversations anything could happen around us, it was rather dangerous especially if it happened when Shaw and his minions could attack at any time. "I'll be waiting outside."

"So exactly what is going on between the two of you?" Charles asked once Erik was out of sight, although I was certain he had worked it out, after all it was Charles Xavier.

"Nothing nosy, now you better get going." I replied pushing him towards the exit, "And what is this about a strip club?"

"Angel's workplace." he replied, another mutant he had been searching for.

"And exactly why did you delve into the wonderful mind of a stripper?" I asked smiling politely as we exited the building. Charles had always had a…risqué side to him.

"She's a mutant Laura," he replied, stopping short of the car where Erik was holding the door open.

"Uhuh." I said crossing my arms and raising an eyebrow, he shook his head and smiled.

"We'll see you later." he said bringing me into a hug before he got into the car.

"Have fun." I said as Erik entered the car, I waved the two of them off as they went out in search of our first mutant recruit. I walked back into the complex, finding Raven in one of the lounge rooms, reading one of the many books this place had to offer. I sat down next her bringing over a book, a glass and a bottle of wine.

"Having fun?" I asked as I poured some wine into the glass, before returning the bottle to it's place.

"Yeah, now I've got some company. Heard they were going to a strip club." Raven answered placing a bookmark in her book and placing it down on the coffee table. "Again." I spat out the wine I had just taken a gulp of most likely staining the carpet.

"What?"

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hi! Sorry for the extremely slow updating! I hope you have enjoyed this chapter ^_^ Ciao! And thanks for the support!


	6. Angel Salvadore

Disclaimer: You already know! Thanks for the support! ^_^ And again sorry for the slow updating.

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><p><span>Charles' P.O.V<span>

After bidding farewell to Raven and Laura, Erik and I travelled to our destination, a sleazy strip club. I was excited with anticipation at meeting a potential ally and another mutant. After finding Raven I wanted to find more mutants and then I found Laura…now Raven was another mutant but still she was not like me, she was even more different than I was, but Laura she had similar powers to my own. Then we found Erik a troubled soul who sought revenge for everything that had happened to him, he too had similar powers to Laura's which is most likely why the pair found themselves attracted to each other. And finally Hank a super genius, who like Raven he had a mutation that made him different to other mutants and the pair found it comforting to find that, there was someone else with the same mutation. No one likes to be alone, not even mutants.

"You know it counts double for both, right?" Angel stated standing before us in her skimpy outfit, raising an eyebrow as Erik and I lounged back on the bed in a backroom away from any prying eyes.

"Mm no, that won't be necessary. Although I'm sure it would be magical." I said looking towards Erik who folded his hands across his chest after placing his glass of champagne on the table adjacent to the bed.

"We were thinking more, we'll show you ours, if you show us yours." Erik explained although it didn't seem to convince her, after all it could have been taken in a rather rude way considering our surroundings.

"Baby that is not the way it works around here." She said hands on her hips looking between the two of us. Erik looks towards me and I nod focusing on the girl in front of me. He snaps his fingers making the bucket of champagne move over towards us, amazement crossed her eyes.

"More tea, vicar?" Erik asked smirking as he saw the look on the girl's face.

'_Fun trick isn't it?' _

I smirked knowing full well that she could see Erik in drag, she giggled nodding. Erik looked between the two of us utterly confused.

"Don't mind if I do." I replied taking my refilled glass and clinking it against Erik's before we both raised them towards Angel.

"My turn." She stated unhooking the back of her top, wings emerged from her back, a mutation I had yet to see, it was marvellous. Mutants that could fly!

"How would you like a job where you get to keep your clothes on?"

Raven's P.O.V

"Do you think they are on their way back?" I asked as I flipped through some extremely boring magazine articles. Laura was sat next to me still reading the book she had picked up when Charles and Erik had left which was well over an hour ago, but the glass of wine she was holding was definitely not her first one. By the time they returned she'd probably be half drunk, though coming from a strip club they too would most likely be a little less sober.

"Possibly though they could be procrastinating and spending a little more time there than they should be." Laura replied placing a bookmark between the pages of her book and placing it down on the immaculate glass table between the sofas. She stood up and looked out of the window into the small courtyard like garden between the buildings of the complex. "Do you think this is a good idea?"

"What searching for other mutants?" I asked I knew she didn't like the idea of spending so much time with a government agency that seemed to have an obsession with mutants. Informing said government about the existence of the world's population of mutants wasn't exactly a great idea either, they could easily use the information to round up all the mutants and execute them. Also using said mutants to fight against another mutant whom we knew little about wasn't exactly a great plan either, we could all easily lose our lives. But I trusted Charles; anything he had done generally was the right thing to do.

"Mm, but more along the lines of helping this…organisation." She replied immediately shutting the curtains as two agents walked by. "Government programs dealing with mutants generally have alternative motives than the ones they broadcast to the public, if they inform the general public at all."

"I'm sure that if Charles thought this was a bad idea, he wouldn't go along with it." I reassured her as I placed the magazine I had in my hand down next to her book. It was a book that I recognised; Charles had bought it for her while they were dating: 'Wuthering Heights'

"Mm…Oh by the way, you know before when they first left, what did you mean when you said again?" she replied turning round a small smile on her lips and an eyebrow quirked in a questioning look.

"Well…" I began before I was cut off by the door opening revealing one of the men in question: Charles.

"Don't answer that Raven." He said quickly ushering Laura down to her previous seat taking the seat in between us himself. Erik shortly followed in taking a seat next to Laura.

"Now are either of the two of you going to tell when you had the time to go to a strip club?" Laura asked looking between the pair, in the short couple of days that we had been here somehow Charles being Charles had found the time to both venture to a pub and a strip club, Erik joined him on these adventures it was kind of sweet like brotherly bonding.

"Well you see…" Erik began trying to explain before being cut off by Charles, he always had a habit of interrupting people.

"And here's our new recruit…ouch! Laura!" he stated as a girl wearing extremely revealing clothing entered the room. I wonder what power she had, most likely something like Charles or Erik and Laura, something that was invisible, not like me at all. I wonder if there is even a mutant that is as different as I am. She looks younger than Laura probably even younger than I am…though through looks alone I'm younger than I really look.

"Hi." She greeted nervously, a quality I wouldn't expect from someone that takes their clothes of for a living, then again meeting other mutants for the first time isn't exactly a walk in the park especially if those mutants happened to be working with the government made it twice as scary.

"Laura, Raven meet Angel."

Laura's P.O.V

After being introduced to our newest 'recruit' we all went our separate ways; Raven took Angel on a tour around the place, Charles went to find Hank although I'm sure he was also off to see a certain CIA agent and Erik well he more than likely returned to his room. There was finally some peace and quiet, time to think about the events that had unfolded in the past few days. The CIA, new mutants, a new threat and Erik. I sighed sitting down on the edge of my bed, the room wasn't much but it was somewhere I could call my own for the time being. A picture frame was opposite me on the dresser, a small token from home, I opened my hand drawing the frame over to me. The picture in the frame was black and white; the figures in it are my grandma and grandpa with my father as a young boy. I never met my grandma she died a couple of years before I was born, this is really the only attachment I have to her all other photos of her are either in my grandpa's possession or have disappeared.

"What would you think of all this?" I whisper smiling slightly as I think of my grandpa ranting and raving at all the agents roaming around the place. At Angel for wearing skimpy clothing, at Raven for hiding her mutation away, at Hank for simply being a super-genius, at Charles for going along with the CIA's plan and at Erik for seeking revenge…in the wrong way.

"Knock knock, Laura?" a voice called as the door creaked open, that voice I'd heard countless times before, it was Charles. He sat down next to me putting an arm around my shoulder. "I'm sure they would be proud of you."

My smile grew as I the picture floated back to its place on the dresser, sometimes Charles just knew the right thing to say.

"So are you going to tell me about your strip club adventures?" I asked sort of ruining a sweet moment, but I never really liked to dwell in the past.

"Only if you tell me about yourself and a certain other mutant." He replied a tough deal, though I knew he'd eventually find out the details even though they were very small.

"Oh, you mean Raven." I joked making the both of us laugh.

"You know who I mean."

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hi! Sorry this is short…well while writing this I'm not entirely sure how this will look up. Also sorry for the extremely slow updating it's down to loads of exams and my computer hating me. But I hope you have enjoyed and I hope to update this more often and soon (after much procrastinating with the plot) will finally be in the home stretch to see this fan fiction completely and totally finished. Ciao! ^_^


	7. Recruitment

Disclaimer: You already know ^_^ Thank you for the support!

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><p><span>Erik's P.O.V<span>

After a night to rest up we were once again going to find more mutant recruits, never in my life would I have thought for a second that there were millions no even thousands of people like me, but with a short space of a couple of days I had met more than I had in all the years of my life.

"Ready to get going?" Charles asked putting on his jacket at the door of my room. Though I had only known this man for a couple of days, he seemed extremely trust worthy, probably one of the first people I had trusted since my mother…

"Come on sleepy head we need to hit the road." Laura added appearing at the door a really big grin on her face. "I get to join you lads on your jolly adventures today so no strip clubs and no procrastinating, I know what you're like Charles."  
>She left the door way still with the huge grin, Charles shook his head.<p>

"Women." He stated only to have a book fly at him…Laura.

"I heard that." She yelled Charles put his hands up in surrender before rubbing the back of his head where the book had hit.

"I'll see you down there, some apologies I think are in order for me." He said before he too followed Laura, the two unlikely companions for me. I shook my head there was one reason why I was here and until I reached that goal nothing would get in my way. Soon that monster will get what he deserves and the sooner that happens my life will finally be free.

Raven's P.O.V

This completely sucks why won't Charles let me go with them? There's nothing dangerous if I accompany them, Laura even gets to go this time. I mean there is nothing wrong with Angel or Hank, but they aren't great company during the day; Hank goes about all this CIA stuff that I'm not allowed to participate in or even observe due to privacy restrictions and well when I'm with Angel all the agents seem to only see the stripper instead of the mutant which really gets on my nerves when they keep coming in every two seconds. I could even cut down the time to recruit new mutants since Charles and Erik could try to recruit some and at the same time Laura and I or even Angel and I could recruit others, but Charles believes this is too dangerous since we wouldn't know if the mutant was friend or foe. A lot of bullcrap if you ask me, he simply wants to keep me where he can check up on me.

"So where are you going today?" I asked as Laura entered the room Angel and I were sat on one of the couches, Angel was reading the magazine I had flipped through the other day where as I was trying to read but I just couldn't get into it.

"Hm I think it was…Charles where are we going?" Laura replied picking up her purse that she had briefly put down on the table. By now Erik had entered the room as well, unnoticed by Laura who was rifling through her bag. Something told me there was something going on between them, like there was between her and Charles a couple of years ago. But this time I seemed somewhat jealous of it.

"All I know is we're looking for a taxi driver." He said making Laura jump, she obviously wasn't expecting Erik to reply. It was rather comical if the book in my hand did not fly out of my hands and hit him on the back of the head. "Ouch, is that always your go to?"

"Only if you annoy, anger, insult or scare me." She replied floating the book back into my hands, Angel was trying to mask her giggles behind her magazine. She received a glare from both Laura and Erik.

"Anyway, I think Charles mentioned something about a cab driver."

Laura's P.O.V

Well it was such a nice day to go for a cab drive wasn't it? First time I thought I would even think about a cab drive, there were a hundred and one more things I'd have preferred to do…but it was to recruit a new ally and it was always nice to meet another mutant, I wonder what kind of powers he would have.

Charles hailed the cab with his power he was able to tell exactly which cab our hopeful new recruit was driving. Once the cab stopped for us he got in the opposite side, Erik opened the door for me.

"Oh what a gentlemen." I said as I shimmied into the middle of the back seat, Erik following suit and closing the door.

"Where to, fellas?" he asked looking at the three of us, like most mutants he looked like your everyday human.

"Richmond, Virginia, please." Erik replied the man looked slightly confused, understandable really since we hadn't asked to go the airport and Richmond was a six hour drive away.

"Right. So you want the airport? The station? What?" he asked in clarification, Erik and Charles shared a look, why? I have no idea it wasn't exactly as if they had perplexed the man it was a valid question.

"No. We were rather hoping you would take us all the way." Charles answered earning a very shocked looked from the man as if we were all completely mad.

"That's a six hour dive." He exclaimed Erik used his power to move the cab meter, the man immediately turned round to look at us.

"That will give us plenty of time to talk."

Charles P.O.V

Before we returned to 'HQ' there was another mutant in the same area, it made sense to go and try and recruit him after Darwin had accepted our offer. He drove us to a bar in which I knew the next mutant made his preferred pub.

"Looks a right dive." Laura commented I hadn't told her but she would not be accompanying us into the bar, she had been so excited to tag along on our journey after all she'd only known mutants, with the exception of Raven, that had a power close to her own.

"Right, well we'll see you in a minute." I said quickly motioning for Erik to get out of the cab quickly, he did so and we left a very angry Laura with an unfortunate Darwin in the cab.

'_You know I really hate you at this moment in time'_

'_I'm sure you don't hate me, love.'_

'_You're so aggravating!'_

As we entered the bar Laura's assumption outside were correct, it was definitely not like the pub back in Oxford. Cigar smoke was thick in the air creating a smoggy atmosphere in the place. I immediately spotted the mutant we were looking for and motioned Erik to precede walking forward.

"Excuse me, I'm Erik Lehnsherr." Erik said standing at the left side of the man who had not shifted in the slightest to acknowledge either of us.

"Charles Xavier." I added still this had no effect on the man; he obviously did not care in the slightest what we were going to say to him.

"Go fuck yourself!" he grunted picking up his whiskey, I looked over at Erik who nodded his head towards the door and we left immediately knowing that it would be a cold day in hell before he would considered joining our ranks. We returned to the cab somewhat disappointed, he certainly would have made a good ally, but not all could be convinced to join us.

"No luck?" Laura asked as we entered the cab I shook my head.

"Wouldn't give us a chance." I replied, Darwin started the engine, "But there are still more out there."

"More? Like us?" Darwin asked surprised as he pulled out into the traffic.

"You'd be surprised how many there are." Laura replied yawning slightly at the end of the sentence.

'_Tired? Kept up by a certain someone?'_

'_Get your head out of the gutter!'_

I immediately received a hit to the arm from her; I looked up to the mirror in the front of the cab to see Darwin looking confused.

"Telepathic conversation." Erik stated Darwin nodded before returning his full concentration to driving. Before returning to the CIA complex we were currently calling home, we managed to recruit two more mutants; Alex and Sean.

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Finally got the motivation and the time to write more! Hope you enjoy this chapter finally the recruiting stage has finished next time will we see Mr Shaw? Well ciao for now! ^_^ And thank you for the support!


	8. We Are Young

Disclaimer: You already know! ^_^ Thank you for the support!

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><p><span>Erik's P.O.V<span>

"Do you think this is a good idea…I mean I know we have people to count on if Shaw…when Shaw attacks, but they're just kids, we can't expect them to fight this war." Laura asked concerned, she'd been perfectly happy at the beginning of recruiting the mutants. She trusted Charles and she still did, but she knew that Shaw could easily annihilate the children, even without seeing what the monster was capable of. "I don't trust places like this."

"Neither do I." I stated she finally turned around from the window, since we'd first met neither of us had asked each other why we didn't trust government agencies that dealt with things like this. I rolled up my sleeve finally showing her the number.

"Erik…where...I'm so sorry…" she asked through choked sobs, I pulled her into a hug.

"Auschwitz." I murmured.

"Oh God." She whispered, during out hug flashes of memories appeared clearly in my mind…they weren't mine however they were Laura's…but she didn't seem to notice. They were just snippets of her past, birthdays, holidays…then it began to get a bit darker; people in white lab coats injecting things into a very young Laura, Charles had once told me that we were similar in ways we didn't understand maybe this was what he meant.

It was a couple of hours later when I found myself on the steps of the Lincoln memorial with Charles, Laura had not accompanied us as she had decided to make sure that the children were alright…more than likely she was sat in her room, reading her book and sipping a glass of red wine.

"Can't stop thinking about the others out there. All those minds that I touched. I could feel them. Their isolation. Their hopes. Their ambitions. I tell you, we've started something incredible, Erik. We can help them." Charles explained as he looked at the surroundings a twinkle in his eye.

"Can we? Identification, that's how it starts. And ends with being rounded up, experimented on. Eliminated." I asked, if my past had taught me anything was that identification was an easy way to eliminate anyone that you feared or hated and what was happening now could easily lead to the extermination of all mutants.

"Not this time. We have common enemies. Shaw, the Russians. They need us." Stated Charles, but what would happen when Shaw was dealt with or when this war was over with? What would happen then? Would they simply leave us alone? No.

"For now."

Raven's P.O.V

Charles and Erik were out once more leaving us alone with the agents…the ones that look at us as if we are attractions at the zoo. Once or twice I caught Laura arguing with several of the agents about some of their comments, even threatening them. Speaking of Laura she stayed behind to 'look after us' however she was up in her room more than likely drinking wine again.

"We should think of code names. We're government agents now, we should have secret code names. I wanna be called Mystique." I suggested the others nodded in agreement whether it was to the name I had given to myself or the idea of having code names, I'm guessing the latter.

"Damn! I wanted to be called Mystique." Sean said jokingly.

"Well, tough! I called it." I stated as I shape-shifted into Sean, the others were…well not completely shocked but they at least gasped at my powers, it was fun to be around people who were both mutants and understood exactly what it was like to be like me. "And I'm way more mysterious than you, Darwin, what about you?"

"Well, uh...Darwin's already a nickname. And you know, it sort of fits. Adapt to survive and all." He replied shifting into a rock form before he shifted back into his normal form, he wasn't a shifter like me in the sense that he had skin like mine, but he could shift his skin into any material he wanted it to be as long as it didn't affect his internal organs.

"What about you?" he asked Sean, who paused for a moment before replying.

"I'm going to be...Banshee." he answered looking very chuffed with himself…though I can't think why Banshee wasn't exactly a great name for a secret agent.

"Why do you wanna be named after a wailing spirit?" Hank asked, most likely airing everyone's question.

"You might want to cover your ears." He answered as he stood up looking towards the window; everyone shrugged and covered their ears. As soon as everyone had covered their ears a screeching whistle echoed round the room and brought down the glass of the window. Once again people stared in shock at Sean, until we were interrupted mentally.

'_What in the world was that noise? If that was you Cassidy I better not find a broken window or any broken glass down there. Now keep quiet or I'm ratting you out to Charles.'_

"Who was that?" Angel asked looking round the place…obviously not everyone knew that Charles wasn't the only one who was able to use telepathic abilities.

"Laura, she's telepathic as well as telekinetic." I replied she nodded in response, Sean looked a little bit worried, after all he'd probably just received his first telepathic threat of his life. "What about you Angel?"

"My uh...stage name is Angel, it kind of fits." She answered as she turned around revealing her wings.

"You can fly?" I asked in awe, she nodded turning round and began hovering over the ground.

"Uh-huh. And uh..."she continued as she opened her mouth and spat a small fireball at the statue outside. "What's your name?"

Hank looked away probably too embarrassed to answer, although he had a mutation he wasn't proud of, he could easily blag it in front of the others and maybe they wouldn't laugh at him so much.

"How about big foot?" Alex offered mockingly making everyone laugh a little, it was quite shocking for mutants to make fun of another mutant after all hadn't they felt like outsiders to normal people, why make a fellow mutant feel more like an outsider.

"Well you know what they say about guys with big feet? And uh...yours are kind of small." I added making Hank smile a little and making Alex shut up pretty quickly. "What about you Alex?"

"I'm not showing you my powers they're too dangerous." He answered as he sat further back into his seat. Surely it wasn't that hard to show us his power.

"Come on Alex." Darwin encouraged, Alex pondered for a minute before shaking his head, why did he think it was too dangerous?

"How dangerous could you possibly be?" Sean asked, everyone stared at Alex who sighed, stood up and walked towards the broken window. He cracked his fingers before looking behind him at us.

"Stand back." He commanded as he began to focus we shifted backwards, but then he walked out of view, so we all went forward, which seemed to miff Alex off, who once again told us to stand back, we shifted slightly making him sigh in defeat before he created some sort of red ring that spun round him before slicing the statue in two. Now I see why he thought it was very dangerous.

"Wow." Everyone said in unison, after that the night got a bit hazy as we found some of the alcohol that Charles had been hiding…well it was most likely Charles, Erik and Laura who had hidden it, they really liked to drink.

Laura's P.O.V

After that loud whistle and the distinctive crash of glass, which was obviously caused by Sean, and his supersonic ability…boy was I going to be yelled at by Charles. But after that commotion it had reasonably been quiet, I'd told Charles I was going to look after them, but well it would be rather weird for me to hang out with a bunch of teenagers who'd finally found people that had similar abilities to them. Plus he couldn't blame me if they found the alcohol he had hidden down there; after all I'd taken my bottle out before they even entered the room. I was all ready to get settled for the evening when an almighty crash came from downstairs, followed by some very loud whoops and then the music started…damn it didn't I warn them! I slammed my book down on the bedside table and pulled myself up from the bed, god I hope Charles isn't back yet. Just as I rounded the corner into the courtyard, three people I didn't want to see just yet had also arrived…just my luck!

"What the hell?" McTaggert questioned looking around the ground at the glass littering the floor as well as the chunks of statue. Charles and Erik looked towards me before turning the gaze and the bunch of kids dancing around on the furniture obviously they were completely pissed. "What are you doing? Who destroyed the statue?"

"It was Alex." Hank replied as the music was cut off, he received an angry glare from Alex. Charles gave me a look that just read how the hell did you let this happen?

"No. Havoc! We have to call him Havoc. That's his name now. And we were thinking, you should be Professor X and you should be Magneto." Raven explained…well butted in more like. It was quite 'cool' that they had made code names for each other…but I felt left out, they'd been able to name Charles and Erik but not me. But now was not the time to air that opinion especially not with Charles as angry as he was.

"Exceptional." Erik commented sarcastically, had I missed something? Maybe Charles had said something about the kids being exceptional before arriving at this spectacle. Erik received a scowl off of Charles, who quickly turned his attention towards Raven. McTaggert had already left to find someone that could be able to replace the glass and fix the statue.

"I expect more from you." He said pointing at Raven before swiftly turning around and walking away, Erik and I following him. "And I expected you to make sure this didn't happen."

"What? They're young; let them have fun while they can. In a day or two everything gets serious." I reasoned, but Charles wasn't having any of it.

"They need to be ready now." He grumbled, that was surely impossible, they couldn't face Shaw not now. A lot of them could hardly control their powers properly, and it was a death sentence to send them against mutants that could easily kill them without a care in the world.

"Charles, if anyone should understand it's you. The party animal of Oxford." I said he'd calmed down considerably since we had entered the living quarters. "They'll be ready when they need to be, but for now it's alright to let their hair down. They've only just found people like them."

"I see your point, but could you have hidden the alcohol better? They've been drinking my scotch." He finally gave in as he sat down on his bed exhausted. I shook my head.

"So that's what your angry about?" I asked teasing him slightly, I looked over at Erik who was already getting ready to go to bed as he began taking off his turtle neck, kind of distracting while you're having a conversation with Charles.

'_I've seen that look before.'_

'_What look?'_

'_That kind adoration, lust filled look.'_

'_Right…'_

'_You know the look you'd have before we ended up between the sheets.'_

'_Jealous Mr Xavier?'_

'_Who wouldn't be?'_

"Will the two of you stop having those telepathic conversations." Erik said as he walked over towards his bed. Charles smirked as he too pulled his shirt off and got ready for sleep.

"Night Magneto, night Professor X." I giggled leaving them for the night and heading off to my own room.

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hope you have enjoyed! =D


	9. A Call To Battle

Disclaimer: You already know! Thanks for the support!

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><p><span>Charles' P.O.V<span>

The time had finally come, the time to strike an attack…would it succeed? Hopefully, if it didn't all I wanted was to be able to abort with as little casualties as we could. It would only be Erik and I who would be travelling to Russia on the part of the mutant contingent, Laura had convinced me enough that the others were far too inexperienced to even be able to come along…Shaw and his mutants would be able to wipe them out of existence in an instant. It didn't bode well for Erik and I either, but we had at least controlled our powers more than the others. Laura would be staying behind so that she could keep an eye on the kids, so that if something did go wrong she would be able to hide their existence if they were found to be in the CIA complex or if in the worst case scenario the CIA decided to disband the mutant section.

"Be careful." Laura said handing my jacket to me; she didn't look too pleased that she wasn't coming along. She'd probably have preferred to have made sure we were safe…and when I say we I mean myself and Erik, she wasn't exactly friendly with Moira.

"We will." Erik assured squeezing her shoulder; he was definitely ready to face the nemesis that had tormented him his whole life, but would we be able to control his anger? Would it affect the mission? Even put the rest of the team in danger? The team assembled piling into a truck which drove us to a CIA air hanger, throughout the journey we continuously went over the plan. A few hours later and we had arrived on Russian soil, it was finally dawning on me the heaviness of this mission, and if we didn't succeed the world would be in more danger.

After passing through the last checkpoint, with a little bit of drama, causing me some exhaustion from extensive use of my powers, we had finally entered the start of the complex. The plan was going well until we spotted the telepath rather than Shaw…did he know we were going to be here? Have we made an extremely bad error? Erik didn't care he ran in taking out several of the guards on his way using the barbed wire that was dotted around the yard. I followed after him leaving behind the rest of the team; we entered the bedroom finding the Russian General in a compromising position and Emma Frost. I placed my fingers on my temple trying to read her mind as Erik subdued the General; however she shifted into diamond form stopping me from entering her mind.

"You can stop trying to read my mind, sugar. You're never going to get anything from me while I'm like this." She said smirking dashing for the door only to be caught by Erik and I pushing her back against the bed frame, Erik bound her arms using the metal.

"So then you can just tell us. Where's Shaw?" Erik asked menacingly as he used his powers to wrap a piece of metal around her neck.

"Erik! Erik, that's enough!" I shouted, though his anger had overcome him as he tightened the metal around her throat. "Erik, that's enough!"

"All yours. She won't be shifting into diamond form again. And if she does, just give her a gentle tap." Erik said triumphantly moving aside as she shifted back to her normal form.

I knelt down in front of her pressing my fingers to my temple, images began to flash before my eyes, over the nuclear war that Shaw planned to initiate.

**_"We are the children of the atom. Radiation gave birth to mutants. What will kill the humans, will only make us stronger."_ **Shaw's voice narrated as the images passed through my mind.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Emma said smirking as I turned towards Erik.

"This is worse than we previously imagined." I stated. "We're taking you with us. CIA will want to question you themselves."

"I doubt it. They have bigger things to worry about right now."

Laura's P.O.V

It was rather a peaceful night, the kids weren't up to their antics like the previous night, but that was more than likely due to the reality they were facing that they would have to fight a war. There was the occasional laughter from downstairs, sooner or later they would be off to bed and I could sneak back down and find some of the wine that Charles had re-hidden. I had gotten up off the bed and was searching the wardrobe for some pyjamas when a scream echoed around the complex. I stood frozen for a second hoping it was just a figment of my imagination, but then there were several more screams…what in the world? I ran out of the room as several gunshots rang out, I ran down the corridor, just as I was about to come to the main staircase, a ripple of fire blocked my path, killing several of the agents. After it had passed I ran into the hallway just at the top of the charred stairs, halting in my tracks I found myself opposite to the man Charles and Erik were supposed to have found in Russia.

"Shaw." I stated this was not good, not good at all. I didn't have a hope in the world at taking down this guy on my own let alone his henchmen. He looked up smirking from underneath that ridiculous helmet.

"Ah, finally another mutant and I'm guessing you're the telekinetic that Erik is so fond of." He said walking up towards me, I tried to move away but I was frozen to the spot, he closed the final couple of meters, I finally tried to move away but it was too late he caught my wrist grasping it tightly and pulling me tightly against his chest. His free hand grasped my chin making me look directly at him.

"I can see why he's taken to you, so pretty and a mutant too." He mused giving me the once over, this man was just too creepy and too much for me to fight against, but that didn't stop me from trying.

"Fuck you." I ground out earning a chuckle and then a slap; he lessened his grasp on my arm slightly, using his free hand to pull the sleeve up on my left arm. What did he plan on doing?

"Well there was one other woman in Erik's life…maybe he should be reminded of her." He mused and then he gripped my arm tighter than before, I thought he'd break the bone, but then there was a searing pain, like my arm was literally on fire. "I absorb energy if you're wondering, and I can use that energy any way I want."  
>I looked between his gleaming eyes and my arm, before the pain was too much and I couldn't keep my eyes open and I couldn't stop myself from crying out. The one thought that helped me deal with the pain slightly was that at least it wasn't the kids. The pain didn't subside as he let go of my arm, I looked down as rivulets of blood fell to the floor, burnt into my arm were several numbers much like the tattoo Erik had received from those bastard Nazis.<p>

"Now shall we find the others." He said his smirk growing as he dragged me through the doors to where Raven and the others were held. One of his henchmen, a red teleport, appeared in black smoke. "Where's the telepath?"

"Not here." He replied monotonously, I looked over at the kids that were completely terrified after seeing so many of the CIA agents. Shaw looked back at me smirking once more as he pushed me over to the others, Raven catching me a gasp escaping as she noticed my bloody and burnt arm.

'Don't worry about it now; we've got more pressing issues at hand.'

"Too bad. Well, at least I can take this silly thing off." He said as he took of his ridiculous looking helmet off…did it stop telepaths from reading his mind?

"We need to get out of here." I whispered to Raven who looked down at me as I slid to the floor.

"Good evening. My name's Sebastian Shaw. And I'm not here to hurt you." He introduced to us, I scoffed.

"Yeah, right." I snarled which made his two henchmen return to a fighting stance only to be waved off by Shaw who continued his little monologue.

"My friends, there's a revolution coming. When mankind discovers who we are, what we can do, each of us will face a choice. Be enslaved or rise up to rule. Choose freely, but know that if you are not with us, then by definition, you are against us." He explained looking at each one of us as he walked towards us. "So, you can stay and fight for the people who hate and fear you. Or you can join me, and live like kings and queens."

He put his hand out offering any of us to join him, I looked at all of them hoping that none of them would accept but surprisingly Angel gave him her hand.

"Angel?" Raven questioned, none of us could believe that she was betraying us and going over to a side that would wipe out billions of lives.

"Are you kidding me?" Alex asked in utter disbelief, Angel turned to look at us, a look of determination yet fear in her eyes.

"Come on. We don't belong here. And that's nothing to be ashamed of." She answered trying to usher us with her as she turned and walked away with Shaw. Raven helped me back up as we all walked across the room as Shaw, Angel and his henchmen walked outside.

"Your right Angel, we don't belong here, we don't belong with the CIA," I said the others looking shocked, but I waved them off slightly wincing slightly as pain resurged in my arm. Shaw's smirk returned. "But we certainly do not belong with a maniac like him. If you knew what he'd done, what he's going to do, you'd stay with us."

"A valiant speech Miss Wilkes, but I believe it is too late to change Angel's mind, or are you going to force her?" he asked his smirk had disappeared slightly, but it was still there. I looked at the rest of the kids, what were we going to do? We couldn't let Shaw get away with this, but forcing Angel to come back with us was just not ethical.

_'What can we do?'_

_'I've got a plan.'_

I looked over at Darwin the oldest of the rag-tag group of young mutants, he stepped forward as if he were going to join Shaw and the others, however there was a twinkle in his eyes, he was the one with the plan.

"Darwin?" Raven questioned on the verge of tears, she didn't want any of this to happen, and none of us did. Shaw's smirk grew as Darwin approached them, but what he didn't expect was for Darwin to grab Angel.

"Now Alex!" he yelled as he switch formed to a rocky metal sort of form protecting both him and Angel as Alex unleashed several rings of pure destructive energy…not exactly the best plan when Shaw was an energy absorber…as the rings approached Shaw he simply opened his arms and absorbed them.

"Nice try." He said that smirk still permanently fixed to his sodding face, Darwin turned around shocked before he launched himself at Shaw.

"No!" everyone screamed as we looked on in horror as Shaw transferred the energy he had absorbed into Darwin…he wouldn't survive this we all knew this. Angel, Shaw and his henchmen disappeared in smoke leaving us to watch as Darwin blew up into pieces.

Erik's P.O.V

We'd been too late to save the compound, it was in pieces. Countless agents were being pulled from the wreckage, Shaw had known what we were going to do and he'd taken the chance to strike.

"That's a burn Laura not a cut." I overheard Charles say to Laura as she received medical treatment, the mutant contingent of the building had not come out of the attack unscathed.

"I know Charles." She replied wincing slightly as the paramedic cleaned the skin, I looked over at the others noting their solemn looks, Darwin had been killed and Angel had defected.

"How did you get a burn like this?" the paramedic asked interesting both Charles and I. "It looks like you fell on a brand."

Before he bandaged the arm, she begrudgingly showed us the burn marks. Once the blood had been cleared it was easier to see what the burn looked like, a combination of numbers, ones I had seen once before, a long time ago. The paramedic bandaged the arm up and then left to check on other injured persons.

"Shaw did this." I stated looking directly at Laura who looked away before nodding. "Bastard."  
>"What do the numbers mean to you?" Charles asked looking towards me. I rolled up my left sleeve showing him the tattoo.<p>

"My mother's number." I replied pulling down the sleeve, there was a moment of silence between the three of us as it sank in, but we needed to come back stronger, we needed to stop Shaw.

"What about the kids?" Laura asked getting up off the steps of the ambulance. "We can't expect them to fight against him."

"I know." Charles agreed disappointment clear in his voice as he walked over to the group of mutants. "We've made arrangements for you to be taken home immediately."

"We're not going home." Sean replied stubbornly as he stood up facing Charles, Laura and I.

"What?" Charles questioned, shocked at the fact that after all that had happened last night, they were still willing to go along with this plan.

"He's not going back to prison." He explained pointing at Alex who stood up, facing us as well, a look of determination and anger in his eyes.

"They killed Darwin." Alex ground out his fists clenching and unclenching, completely angry that Shaw had taken the life of his friend. No sign of fear at what the man was capable of doing.

"All the more reason for you to leave. This is over." Charles argued, he didn't want to see any more people die, he felt at fault since he was the one that found where they were and he was the one who recruited them.

"Darwin's dead, Charles. And we can't even bury him." Raven added tears threatening to spill out of her eyes as Hank put an arm around her shoulders.

"We can't fight against him like this; we're not strong enough to take him on." Laura added she'd recovered slightly after being in such pain and losing some blood. But the rest of the group did not want to hear it and did not want to go back to their previous lives.

"We can avenge him." I said earning a glare from Charles who brought me off to the side.

"They're just kids." He hissed as the 'kids' stood up looking over at us; Raven went over to hug Laura who was also looking over towards us.

"No. They were kids. Shaw has his army. We need ours." I said confidently knowing that Charles would have to accept their help, to fight against Shaw they were our only hope of winning.

"We'll have to train. All of us. Yes?" Charles sighed in defeat turning round to face the others who were radiating triumph at the chance to fight against the man who had taken their friend away from them.

"Yeah." Alex agreed the others nodding in agreement with him.

"We can't stay here. Even if they re-opened the department, it's not safe. We've got nowhere to go." Hank said the only one with some apprehension going into this fight.

"Yes we do." Charles replied a twinkle in his eyes, and a couple of hours later we realised exactly what he meant.

"This is yours?" Sean asked in awe, the Xavier mansion wasn't exactly small making everyone except Raven, Laura and Charles himself gasp in awe.

"No. It's ours." Charles corrected smiling as he turned round to face the group.

"Honestly Charles, I don't know how you survived. Living in such hardship." I commented sarcastically earning a chuckle of Charles.

"Well, it was a hardship softened by me." Raven added as she walked over towards Charles and ushered the group indoors.

"What a nice place to train." Laura commented as she walked over to the two of us joined by Moira. "Lots of space."

A couple of days of settling in and we were already into the thick of training, using all of Charles' mansion and grounds; Alex using the underground bunker to practise his control and the grounds being used by us all.

"You sure?" asked Charles as he pointed the gun straight at my head, Laura sat a few meters away flipping through a magazine as she arranged plants in the garden with flicks of her wrist…a sort of training for her.

"I'm sure." I answered confidently focusing on the gun and the bullet that Charles would be firing shortly.

"Got it." He said cocking the gun his finger going to pull the trigger, but then he stopped taking the gun off of target. "No! No, I can't! I'm sorry. I can't shoot anybody in point blank, let alone my friend."

"Oh, come on! You know I can deflect it." I said reassuring him taking his hand with the gun in and pointing it at myself. "You're always telling me I should push myself."

"He won't shoot you Erik." Laura added as she placed some more roses in plant-pots.

"Shouldn't you be training?" I asked she smiled a twinkle in her eyes.

"What do you think this is?" She replied as multiple furniture and plants flew around the yard finding places as she rearranged the garden. "You never know when potted plants can come in handy."

"If you know you can deflect it, then you're not challenging yourself! Whatever happened to the man who's...who's trying to raise a submarine?" Charles asked returning me to the current predicament that I faced.

"Well, I can't! Something that big, I...I need the situation, the anger." I replied out of the corner of my eye I saw Laura shake her head along with Charles.

"No, the anger is not enough." Charles reasoned as he disarmed the gun and threw it towards Laura who caught it with ease.

"Well, it's gotten the job done all this time." I reasoned, but neither of them agreed with me.

"Anger takes control out of the power." Laura added joining us on the gravel path.

"Exactly, it's nearly gotten you killed all this time."

Charles' P.O.V

Hopefully we wouldn't be found here, but something told me that Shaw wouldn't attack us now; probably thinking we'd given up. And he doesn't have his telepath anymore to tell him exactly what was happening, an advantage for us.

"In each of us, two natures are at war." I quoted as Hank and I walked out onto the gravel path around the house.

"Robert Louis Stevenson; Jekyll and Hyde." Hank answered, this boy was a genius as well as probably the fastest man on the planet.

"Top marks. The story wasn't about good and evil though, was it Hank? It was about man's animal nature and his struggle to control it, to conform. And it's that struggle which is holding you back." I said, but Hank disagreed with me.

"No. Jekyll was afraid of what he could be capable of." He explained, knowing a lot more about it than I would.

"And you are too." I reasoned as I began to get ready to race the boy, this time I would surely be beaten by him…well I hope I would be beaten by him. "If you wanna beat me this time, you have to set the beast free. On your marks. Get set. Go!"

Hank easily overtook me and once he did that he set off at a blinding speed finishing a lap of the whole grounds in mere minutes.

"Congratulations my friend! Robert Louis Stevenson would have been proud." I congratulated clapping him on the back as we walked towards the start line once more.

"Impressive Hank, feet like those, all you need is a red nose, right Bozo?" Alex commented as he walked out of the house, the two of them fought like they were in high school together.

"I'm done here." Hank grumbled as he pushed passed Alex and returned inside the house.

"Thank you, Alex." I said shaking my head at the boy's antics and following Hank back inside. An hour or so later we were gathered on the second floor, this was part of Sean's training. "Now remember, scream as hard as you can."

"You need the sound waves to be supersonic. Catch them at the right angle and they should carry you." Hank explained, not exactly the best reassuring words you could say to someone who was about to jump out of a second story window.

"They should carry me. That's reassuring." Sean added as he looked down at the drop.

"Don't worry Sean, you shouldn't break anything." Laura added, I looked over at the other window as Erik, Laura, Raven and Alex stood watching the spectacle unfold.

"Good luck. And don't forget to scream." I said patting him on the back as Hank and I walked backwards slightly allowing Sean to be able to go at his own pace. He took a few breaths before he pushed himself off the windowsill, but he was flailing and didn't properly scream meaning that he fell straight into the bushes that waited underneath the windowsill. Laura tried not to laugh as Alex and Erik both burst out into laughter followed shortly by Raven.

Erik's P.O.V

"Right so exactly how is arranging metals pots vital to my training?" I asked Laura as she sat up on the countertop. She was once again arranging things, just this time in the kitchen, I had yet to see her truly training, over the course of the days she'd been arranging things from books to plants and now it was the contents of the cupboards.

"Control simple as, if you can control yourself to only focus on certain objects then you can control yourself to move bigger objects." She explained as she arranged he plates in width order in the top cupboard, while I was set the task of arranging the pans in ascending size. "Plus it gets the kitchen tidy quicker."

"So that's it." I said smirking as I stopped what I was doing and looked over at her, there was that tell-tale twinkle in her eyes that just read mischievousness.

"What? If you haven't noticed we're the only two…well one and a half telekinetics in this household." She explained as she finished with the plates. "Plus I haven't spent much time alone with you since the whole fiasco."

"Ah, sneaky plan Miss Wilkes." I said putting my arms around her waist kissing her gently our little moment was rudely interrupted as Charles called for her, shouting something about needing her assistance with Alex.

"Well, I'll see you later." She said kissing me goodbye as she exited the kitchen, well there was no point in sticking around here, I guess I could take the time to look around and it was while looking around the place that I found Raven. She was lifting weights and did not seem to have noticed my presence in the room what so ever, a very dangerous thing in the field of battle, I lifted the barbell out of her hands and she whipped her head round to look at the door where I was stood.

"If you're using half your concentration to look normal, then you're only half paying attention to whatever else you're doing. Just pointing out something that could save your life." I commented as I released the barbell letting it fall down making Raven shift back into her true form so she was able to catch it before it injured her. "You want society to accept you, but you can't even accept yourself."

I left the room, leaving Raven to think about what I had said if she truly did want to be accepted then she had to accept herself for what she was, like Hank did. I met up with Hank himself along with Charles, Laura and a very scared looking Sean, I soon learnt that he was going to fly off of the satellite dish…

"You truly believe I'll fly this time?" Sean asked nervously as he looked down, we were a hell of a way up if he wasn't going to be able to do it, which is more than likely why Laura was up here, so if something did go wrong she'd hopefully be able to catch him.

"Unreservedly." Charles answered confidently patting him on the back.

"I trust you." Sean said turning back slightly to look at Charles.

"I'm touched." Charles replied smiling happily, but I knew there was a 'but' coming.

"I don't trust him." he said motioning towards Hank, well he did have something to go on with the first failed attempt of flying.

"Say nothing." Charles warned pointing behind him as Hank was about to retaliate.

"I'm gonna die!" Sean mumbled as he looked further down the satellite grasping onto the rails for dear life.

"You won't die. I'll catch you." Laura reassured, though it didn't seem to stop him fearing what was about to come.

"All right, look we're not gonna make you do anything you don't feel comfortable with, all right?" Charles said as Sean began to back away from the edge, if he didn't do this he would never progress further.

"Here let me help." I said as I pushed him off of the platform, Charles, Hank and Laura immediately rushed forward seeing if he was alright…well he was dropping to Earth pretty fast, but his scream was uplifting him.

"Erik!" Charles and Laura shouted, though as soon as they saw him flying, they were relieved that he hadn't ended up on the floor.

"What? You know you were thinking the same." I chuckled as we stood there for a while watching as Sean flew circles around the satellite before he landed safely on the ground a perfect way to train.

It was a day later that the focus was yet again on the satellite just this time it wasn't about jumping off the thing, it was about moving it.

"You see that?" Charles asked as he pointed towards the satellite a few good miles away from where we stood. Laura was sat further away from us this time underneath some trees, this time meditating. "Try turning it to face us."

I put my hands up in front of me trying to channel my power towards the dish, willing myself to turn it towards us, but I just couldn't and I let go resting slightly on the rail.

"You know, I believe that true focus lies somewhere between rage and serenity. Would you mind if I...?" he asked finishing the question with a wiggle of his fingers near his temple, meaning that he wanted access into my mind, I nodded. Images flashed before settling down, a scene I had long forgotten, a Hanukkah from the past, my mother and I lighting the candles. Tears streamed down my face as well as Charles' as the memory finally faded.

"What did you just do to me?" I asked, wiping away the tears as Charles did the same.

"I accessed the brightest corner of your memory system. It's a very beautiful memory, Erik. Thank you." He answered smiling through the tears.

"I didn't know I still had that." I said leaning against the railing more, as I went over the scenes in my head.

"There's so much more to you than you know. Not just pain and anger. There's good to you, I felt it. And when you can access all that, you'll possess a power no one can match. Not even me. So, come on. Try again?" he asked as we both turned our attention back to the satellite and I once again tried to turn it and to my surprise it turned round. It felt so good to have succeeded; emotion took over as I began to laugh through the tears joined by Charles too.

Laura's P.O.V

We'd been called into the main drawing room, where Charles kept the TV. President Kennedy was going to address the nation, which would inform us of how close the fight was, whether it was going to be a couple of days or even weeks. But it wasn't exactly great news, but it gave us a good idea to where we would find Shaw.

"That's where we're gonna find Shaw." Erik stated as he got up off of his seat as the speech ended.

"How do you know?" Alex asked sceptically, but after the whole thing in Russia, where they had managed to get information out of Emma Frost.

"Two super powers facing off and he wants to start world war three. He won't leave anything to chance." Charles explained as he switched the TV off, the group nodded in understanding. This was our only chance to make sure nuclear war did not happen and that Shaw did not win. If we failed, the world would change forever.

"So much for diplomacy." Erik sighed, he was ready for this fight, ready to finally avenge his mother, but how would that change things? "I suggest you all get a good night's sleep"

With that Raven, Sean, Alex and Hank left the room knowing that in the morning, we'd be going into war. Moira also left the room, probably to notify the CIA or to get in contact with them at least. Erik and Charles began another one of their nightly chess games as I settled into a chair with the final couple of chapters of my book to read with a glass of wine in hand, while they drank scotch.

"Cuba, Russia, America. Makes no difference. Shaw's declared war on mankind, on all of us. He has to be stopped." Charles said monotonously as he moved a piece on the board while taking a sip of his scotch.

"I'm not gonna stop Shaw. I'm gonna kill him. Do you have it in you to allow that?"

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hi! Hope you have enjoyed took me awhile to finish this chapter so much editing and re-editing, planning and re-planning this chapter. Some scenes were cut to shorten it down and to stop receptiveness of some lines. Already have the final chapter near enough finished at this stage, it was written faster than this chapter, but I still have to tweak it a bit. =D couple more chapters to go and this fan fiction will be finished! Ciao for now! =D


	10. Peace Was Never An Option

Disclaimer: You already know! Hope you enjoy and thanks for the support! =D

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><p><span>Charles' P.O.V<span>

"You've known all along why I was here, Charles. But things have changed. What started as a covert mission, tomorrow mankind will know that mutants exist. Shaw, us, they won't differentiate. They'll fear us. And that fear will turn to hatred." Erik explained it had been a while since Laura had left us to go to bed and now it was just Erik and I in another chess game.

"Not if we stop a war. Not if we can prevent Shaw. Not if we risk our lives doing so." I reasoned surely the world would see that mutants were not out to harm them, even if Shaw was, the rest of us were not.

"Will they do the same for us?" he asked Erik had every right to be sceptical of other humans after all he had been subjected to the horror of one of the worst concentration camps ever recorded: Auschwitz.

"We have it in us to be the better men." I answered earning a scoff off of Erik, surely he didn't believe that the people we were risking our lives to save, the people that had specifically recruited us to save the world, were going to turn on us and hunt us down like wild animals.

"We already are! We're the next stage of human evolution. You said it yourself?" Erik stated, I couldn't believe it, sure we were the next stage of human evolution but that didn't make it so that we were the better men.

"No! No!" I said standing up and looking back at Erik as if he'd grown another head.

"Are you really so naive, as to think that they won't battle their own extinction? Or is it arrogance?" he asked, somewhere deep down inside I knew he would be like this in the end, all he wanted was to kill Shaw and he believed once he did that the world would turn against us all.

"I'm sorry?" I questioned sitting down once more and taking a sip of scotch.

"After tomorrow, they're gonna turn us. But you're blind to it, because you believe they're all like Moira." He explained with confidence, sure a lot of humans were like Moira, not all were, but not all were like Shaw.

"You believe they're all like Shaw." I retaliated, a stalemate just like the game. "Listen to me very carefully my friend. Killing Shaw will not bring you peace."

"Peace was never an option."

Raven's P.O.V

After being turned down by Erik, which was rather confusing in itself, one minute he was telling me that I should accept myself if I wanted society to accept me and the next he refuses to acknowledge me. Maybe I should stay blue for the rest of my life and no change permanently into human form.

"You know, sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if you hadn't found me here that night?" I mused out loud as Charles entered the room.

"Sorry, what? You...aahh!" Charles replied spotting that I wasn't in any clothes and averting his gaze. "For God's sake, Raven! Where are your clothes? Put...put...put some clothes on."

"That's not what you said when you first saw me. But I guess pets are always cuter when they're little, right?" I said solemnly as I picked up a robe and put it on allowing Charles to finally look over at me.

"Raven, I don't know what's gotten into you lately. I thought you'd be in a good mood. Hank, tells me that he's found the answer to your cosmetic problem." He explained, I didn't know whether to be happy or not that he had found a cure…recently I was in doubt as to whether I should go through with it.

"You're gonna tell me what's the matter, or do I have read your mind?" he asked wiggling those fingers near his temple.

"You promised me you'd never do that." I said shockingly he hadn't broken his promise up until now.

"Until recently, I never had to use my power to know what you were thinking, Raven." He reasoned, and then again I could hardly make heads or tails of my thought processes.

"You know Charles; I used to think it was gonna be you and me against the world. But no matter how bad the world gets, you don't want to be against it, do you? You wanna be a part of it."

Laura's P.O.V

To say I got a great night's sleep was not exactly correct, worry had overcome and now I was facing the real test of my life, one mistake and it was over. I joined the others in Hank's lab…just minus Hank.

"Hank has been busy." Erik commented as Charles opened a box revealing, blue and yellow flight suits made for all of us.

"Do we really have to wear these?" Sean asked, well they weren't exactly going to win us any fashion prizes, but they certainly would help keep us alive.

"As none of mutated to endure extreme G-force or being riddled by bullets, I suggest we suit up."

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hope you enjoy! Considerably shorter than the previous chapter, but we are progressing nicely! Couple more chapters people and the events will have completely unfolded! Woo! So happy to be on the verge of finishing this even if I have enjoyed writing it so much (even though it's been a bit slow) Thanks again for the support! Ciao for now! =D


	11. Sublift

Disclaimer: You already know! Thanks for the support!

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><p><span>Charles' P.O.V<span>

"Where's Hank?" Raven asked looking around the hangar as we stood in line looking at the marvellous plane Hank had designed and created.

"I'm here." The gruff voice of Hank said we all turned to see a rather large figure come out of the shadows of the plane.

"Hank?" I asked as the figure got closer revealing a very blue and very beast like Hank McCoy.

"It didn't attack the cells. It enhanced them. It didn't work." Hank explained in defeat hanging his head.

"Yes it did, Hank. Don't you see? This is who you were meant to be. This is you. No more hiding." Raven praised moving forward towards Hank.

"Never looked better, man," Erik began to praise only to be cut off as Hank grabbed him by the neck lifting him off the ground and at the same time strangling him.

"Hank!" Laura exclaimed as her and I tried to get Hank to let him go.

"Don't mock me!" Hank ground out.

"Hank, put him down immediately, please? Hank! Hank!" I commanded hurriedly hoping that we wouldn't lose one of our team before actually going to the battle, luckily for Erik, Hank let him go.

"I wasn't!" Erik wheezed as he finally was able to breathe properly once more.

"Even I got to admit, you look pretty bad-ass. I think I got a new name for you." Alex commented as Hank looked over towards him. "Beast."

With that done we took to the aircraft everyone mentally preparing themselves for what was about to happen. It took a couple of minutes to arrive at our destination; Hank began to slow down the plane. I began to read crew members minds on the boat that was heading straight for the embargo line.

"Crew of the Aral Sea are all dead. Shaw's been there." I explained as I witnessed Shaw's red mutant wipe out the crew.

"He's still here. Somewhere." Erik growled.

"He's set the ship on course for the embargo line." I said hurriedly, knowing full well what would happen.

"If that ship crosses the line, our boys are gonna blow it up. And the war begins." Moira highlighted everyone's fears.

"How can we stop it?" Laura questioned, I may just have the plan.

"Unless they're not our boys." I said with a wicked grin on my face. I closed my eyes focusing on one of the other Russians ship locating one of the crew members closest to the missiles. I immediately entered the mind of one of the crew members and made them press the fire button, blowing up the ship closest to the embargo line.

"That was inspired, Charles." Moira praised, we were out of some danger but Shaw was still out there and he wouldn't stand for this.

"Thank you very much. But I still can't locate Shaw." I said looking over at Erik.

"He's down there. We need to find him, now!" Erik growled out we both looked down towards the cock-pit.

"Hank?" I questioned, he looked over at Moira briefly.

"Is there anything unusual on the radar or scanners?" he asked her earning a shake of the head.

"No. Nothing." She replied, damn he must be under the water.

"Submarine?" Laura asked, "Or he's on the land." He wouldn't be on land he'd want to be in the middle of this fray and he was more than likely in his sub.

"We don't have sonar." Hank responded as he turned the plane round so we hovered slightly over the battlefield.

"Yes, we do!" Sean said confidently as he walked over to the back of the plane where Laura, Erik and I were stood, Laura stood back a bit as he joined us and Hank began to lower the ramp.

"Yes, we do!"

Erik's P.O.V

Sean flew out the plane and into the water Charles was with him mentally, once we found Shaw he'd know about.

"Got him, you are ready for this?" Charles asked as I nodded, Laura placed a hand on my shoulder. They both believed I could do this and I wasn't about to let them down.

"Let's find out." I replied lowering myself onto the wheels of the plane, putting a hand out readying myself.

'_Remember, the point between rage and serenity.'_

I closed my eyes focusing, finally finding the submarine, then did I truly focus the confidence both Laura and Charles had in me fuelled my efforts as I finally brought the sub out of the water. The plane along with the submarine crashed onto the beach. All but Moira and Charles headed out onto the beach, ready for the final showdown, if we won this nuclear war would be avoided. Sean took on Angel, while Beast and Alex took on Azazeal leaving riptide to Laura and Raven. With everyone allowing me a straight path to the submarine and ultimately to Shaw, Charles was with me mentally that is.

'_Erik, you're there. You've reached the void.'_

"He's not here, Charles. Shaw's not here! He's left the sub." I said out loud knowing that Charles would be able to here. I searched the whole sub and yet the man had eluded me.

'_What? He's got to be there! He has to be! There's nowhere else he can be! Keep looking!'_

"And I'm telling you he's not! There's no one here, Goddammit!" I yelled as I began to fling things around the sub in frustration he couldn't have escaped! And then the wall behind me opened…

"Erik, what a pleasant surprise."

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Only one more chapter to finish (Since I've already written the last chapter) Hope you have enjoyed! Finally getting into the nitty-gritty of the battle! Thanks for the support! Ciao for now! =D


	12. Mutant And Proud

Disclaimer: You already know! Second to last chapter! =D Thanks for the support!

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><p><span>Erik's P.O.V<span>

"May I ask you something? Why are you on their side?" Shaw asked as I enter the secret space in the sub, the 'void' as Charles put it. "Why fight for a doomed race who'll hunt us down as soon as they realize their reign is coming to end?"

I swung hard hitting Shaw directly in the face, after all these years it felt so good to punch him.

"I'm sorry for what happened in the camps. I truly am." Shaw said, but his tone made it sound as though he was lying and with this git he probably was. He pushed me hard against the wall causing it to crack suddenly I heard Charles again.

'_Erik, whatever you do you can keep doing it. It's starting work.'_

"But everything I did, I did for you. To unlock your power. To make you embrace it." He explained grabbing me once more and throwing me against the opposite wall, could breaking the walls open up the void so that Charles could access my mind. "You've come a long way from bending gates. I'm so proud of you."

Finally I got a shot at using my power; the void was made out of metal…perfect. I used the broken parts of the wall to trap him.

"And you're just starting to scratch the surface. Think how much further you could go, together." He continued smirking as the metal stopped his movement momentarily. "I don't want to hurt you, Erik. I never did. I wanna help you. This is our time, our age. We are the future of the human race. You and me, son. This world could be ours."

"Everything you did made me stronger. Made me the weapon I am today. It's the truth. I've known it all along. You are my creator." I explained using the opportunity of Shaw lowering his defences momentarily to lift off his helmet allowing Charles access to his mind. "Now, Charles!"

Charles took the chance freezing Shaw in place, now was the time that our paths split, when our friendship would most likely break apart.

"Sorry, Charles." I murmured as I readied myself to kill the man who had tormented me for a lifetime.

'_Erik, please! Be the better man! You have it...'_

I took Shaw's helmet out of his hands, the only defence against a telepath.

"It's not that I don't trust you." I said as I began to put the helmet on.

'_Erik, there will be no turning back!'_

Once the helmet was fully atop my head, Charles' voice disappeared. Now it was time to get my revenge.

"If you're in there, I'd like you to know that I agree with every word you said. We are the future. But unfortunately, you killed my mother." I explained holding up the coin that he had given me all the way back in the camp, the coin he'd given me after he killed my mother.

"This is what we're going to do." I began as I opened my palm flat with the coin in the middle of it, looking up at Shaw.

'_**No! Please, Erik! No!'**_

"I'm going to count to three. And I'm going to move the coin." I finished releasing the coin in the air; it began to slowly fly towards Shaw, in line with his forehead.

"One."

'_**Please, Erik!'**_

"Two." The coin moved closer to Shaw. "Three."

The coin enter Shaw forehead slicing straight through the brain and coming out of the back of his head, it clattered to the floor. Finally!

Laura's P.O.V

After subduing Shaw's henchmen, we waited for further information as to whether Erik had succeeded in finding and subduing Shaw…or more than likely killed Shaw. Then there were screams coming from Charles…what had happened? They soon died off…god I hope he's ok, but leaving the henchmen would be a terrible problem. A couple of minutes after Charles' screams stopped, Erik emerged out of the sub along with floating corpse of Shaw, which dropped to floor.

"Today our fighting stops!" he announced as he dropped to the floor. "Take off your blinders, brothers and sisters. The real enemy is out there. I feel their guns moving in the water. Their metal, targeting us. Americans, Soviets, humans. United in their fear of the unknown. The Neanderthal is running scared, my fellow mutants!"

Charles by now had emerged from the plane with Moira, Erik turned towards him. He'd totally lost it, was he seriously going to harm the people on the boats.

"Go ahead, Charles. Tell me I'm wrong." He taunted as Charles approached him fingers on his temple looking out towards the ships, but he didn't need to answer the ships fired all their missiles towards us, they truly hated us. Erik stopped the missiles, but then he began to turn them around aiming them back at the ships. Charles looked at me and I began trying to turn them away from us all, but Erik was just too strong.

"Stop this Erik please." I pleaded, trying in vain once more to turn the missiles away.

"Erik, you said yourself, we're the better men. This is the time to prove it. There are thousands of men on those ships. Good, honest, innocent men! They're just following orders." Charles reasoned, but Erik wasn't responding he'd turned all the missiles towards the ships. He was going to go through with this…he'd turned into the monster Shaw wanted him to be.

"I've been at the mercy of men just following orders. Never again!" he ground out as he released the nuclear weaponry as they began to travel back towards the ships.

"Erik! No, don't…ngh!" I screamed trying to stop the missiles once more, but then I felt a sting in my back like something had stabbed me, but not with a knife. My hands held my stomach as a searing pain began to ebb from there. I looked down as I removed my hands feeling something warm and wet coat them…god I hope it isn't…blood. I've been shot. "God…"

"Laura!" Charles yelled as I collapsed to the floor, he caught my head before it hit the sandy ground. He looked behind us yelling at Moira about disarming a lone soldier? When did he get here? "Stay with me!"

"Laura!" Erik yelled as he paced backwards losing control of the missiles, but then he steadied his hands so they stopped. He placed his free hand on mine, "God, please…"

Raven was knelt somewhere next to Erik, but I just didn't have the energy to look around; the only people that were in my view were Charles and Erik.

"Guess this is the end huh? Thought I'd go out in a bang, but I guess I'll settle for a fizzle. A bullet, jeez my reactions aren't as good as I thought." I joked, coughing and groaning slightly as the pain intensified slightly. Erik and Charles were still in shock at what had happened, but Erik still needed to concentrate on those missiles.

"Don't say that, you can still survive this." Charles reassured tucking a stray hair behind my ear, kissing my forehead and squeezing my hand. But I knew deep down inside this was it, I wouldn't see tomorrow, the outcome of this battle, whether Erik or Charles was right about humanity.

"It'll all be fine and you'll be at home tomorrow reading the last chapter of the book you love so much." Erik said trying to smile in reassurance; I tried to smile back after all these were the last few minutes I had with the two of them.

"That…would be nice…watching the two…of you playing chess…" I rasped it was such an effort to talk now, I could literally feel my life draining and even though I knew I wouldn't be able to do the things I wanted to do in life, I smiled. "The two of you…Raven…you too…have made…my life so…so happy."

"Don't talk like this Laura." Charles said tears trailing down his face as he stroked his fingers through my hair. I looked over to him taking the hand he held and wiping his tears away, before turning to Erik who was also in tears and wiping his away. Seeing them in tears made me cry to.

"I don't want to go." I cried shaking slightly and wincing as the pain spread through my body. Erik broke down clutching my hand to his chest and resting his forehead on mine.

"Don't leave me." He whispered his tears mingling with mine; Charles clutched my hand harder as if it would keep me there with them. Raven too was crying most likely being consoled by Hank.

"I love you…." I whispered, darkness taking over, with my final energy I focused on the pocket watch I held on my person breaking it on the precise time of my death.

Charles' P.O.V

"No…no!" I cried clutching Laura's hand as it went slack in mine. "You can't die! Not now!" Tears blurred my vision, my friend had gone, and a woman I had loved and still kept close to my heart had been taken from me.

"Laura!" Erik cried clutching her body to his as I let go taking her watch with me…when had it broken? Erik was in floods of tears, he truly had loved her. But his momentary lapse of control sent missiles spiralling everywhere.

"Erik!" I shouted he let go of her body jumping up and focusing once more, looking back at her as Raven cradled her. He closed his eyes willing the tears to stop as he directed the missiles once more. I had to do something, I'd just lost Laura, I wasn't about to lose Erik. I ran at him tackling him to the floor, he punched me and tried to get to his feet; missiles began exploding in mid-air as he lost control of a few. Moira began shooting at Erik…this wouldn't work he could easily deflect them which is what he did as I began to stand back up. Unfortunately one of the shots hit me, directly in my lower back, unlike Laura it didn't travel through, but it hurt like hell. Erik ran over to me, holding me just before I completely hit the floor. He still had control of the missiles. The pain was unbearable, maybe the same pain Laura went through.

"I'm so sorry!" he said as the tears returned to his eyes. The others began approaching except Raven who was shocked frozen. "I said back of! You! You did this!" He focused on the dog tags as the rest of the missiles exploded, meaning his full focus was on Moira's dog-tags as he began to strangle her.

"Please! She didn't do this, Erik. You did." I said, he immediately stopped looking down at me in shock but he knew he had done this.

"Us turning on each other. It's what they want. I tried to warn you, Charles. I want you by my side. We're brothers, you and I. All of us, together. Protecting each other. We want the same thing." He explained he then looked over at Laura. "She wanted us all together. She believed in a better future for us."

"My friend, I'm sorry. But we do not." I said shaking my head; I too looked over at Laura. "She believed in equality for all, she believed humans and mutants would live together in harmony."

Erik's P.O.V

I put Charles down on the ground carefully, turning round to the other mutants.

"The society won't accept us. We form our own. The humans have played their hand. Now we get ready to play ours. Who's with me?" I asked putting my hand out as an invite. "No more hiding."

Azazeal, Riptide and Angel walked over and stood beside me. Raven ventured towards me leaving the side of Laura, but she walked towards Charles.

"You...you should go with him. It's what you want." Charles said looking over at me.

"You promised me you would never read my mind." She replied smiling through the tears.

"I know. I promised you a great many things, I'm afraid. I'm sorry." Charles said chuckling slightly but wincing in pain, I looked away the scene reminded me too much of what had occurred mere minutes ago with Laura…why did she have to be taken away from us. Raven had said her goodbye to Charles, she gave Laura a last farewell before joining me, I too said my last goodbye to Laura, closing her eyes and wiping some blood of her face as I pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"And Beast? Never forget, mutant and proud!"

Charles' P.O.V

"Charles, don't move. Okay?" Hank commanded as he Alex and Sean joined Moira and I. Erik and Raven had left, the hole left in my heart by the death of Laura widened as I lost two more friends.

"I won't. Actually, I can...I...I can't feel my legs!" I replied panicking.

"What?" Moira asked concerned.

"I can't feel my legs! I can't feel my legs!"

_**"Charlie-boy! Hey! You know when I told you I was a mutant, well I'm proud of it! And you should be proud to be one too!"**_

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hello! Last chapter I am writing for this fic and I was as emotional at writing this as I was writing the final chapter! Hope you have enjoyed! =D Thanks for the support! Ciao for now!


	13. The End To The Beginning

Disclaimer: You already know! Thanks for the support it has meant so much to me! Final chapter!

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><p><span>Charles' P.O.V<span>

If it was a day to hold a funeral, it was this day. The clouds blocked any sunlight and it would surely rain soon enough. I'd heard in many cultures it snowed or rained when someone's soul passed on into heaven…Laura didn't deserve to die…but she deserved her place in heaven. The only family she had left, her grandfather, lead the service it was held in the family graveyard where she was put in the mausoleum along with her father and brothers, the only other mutants in her family. Her pocket watch placed atop the concrete coffin, often like the soldiers of wars gone, the watch was broken on the time she died.

Friends from her whole life had gathered to in a sense celebrate her life and mourn her death. She'd meant so much to me over the years, the study buddy, the drinking partner, my lover and most of all a most cherished friend. One bullet had taken that away from me. Tears pricked my eyes as Moira wheeled me back inside the house, inside a separate room awaited Hank, after the attack at Cuba mutants were the number one enemy of the world I hated to admit it, but Erik had been right. Moira left me in the capable hands of Alex, Hank, Sean and Mr Wilkes.

"I'm sorry…" I murmured as the tears that I had tried so hard to stop from falling cascaded down my cheeks. Hank, Alex and Sean seemed to sense that they should leave me with Mr Wilkes and so headed further into the 'mutant only' section of the house, only the rest of the guests did not know it was mutant only.

"Charles, you could have done nothing more." He reassured, but he didn't know what had gone on, on that beach. He wasn't there; he didn't know what I could or did do. I could have saved her; she could be stood here telling me how stupid I am for crying or how stupid it was that Erik and I were now enemies rather than friends. And how stupid the world was for making the people that saved them from total annihilation.

"I could have saved her. She could be standing here right now, but she isn't because of me!" I yelled I didn't care if anyone heard; I didn't care if they barged in and asked me to leave telling me that I was disgracing Laura's final 'party'.

"Calm down." He tried once more, but it did nothing but fuel my anger. My friend had been ripped away from me, because of some stupid war that no one would applaud or even acknowledge that we stopped from spiralling out of complete control.

"Calm down! Why should I calm down? My friend is gone and you expect me to calm down?! She shouldn't have died! She shouldn't have…" I broke down my emotions mixing with sadness taking over, it was then I realised that I hadn't lost one friend, I'd lost three.

"_**Charles, I've got something to tell you…I'm a mutant." Laura stated staring me straight in the eye. "And I don't care whether you think that's weird, I'm proud to be a mutant." **_

"_**There are others like us out there, more than you could ever imagine!" she explained as she paced round my room. "I once knew an empath…it didn't go well."**_

"_**You don't have to be nervous Charles." She said as she teasingly began to strip. "I love you." **_

"_**If we don't survive this, and I mean this Charles, please remember that I will always love you." **_

Erik's P.O.V

I wasn't exactly given a warm reception as I entered the Wilkes' house, I wasn't exactly expecting them to welcome me with open arms, but they could at least put the split behind them and focus on Laura. I had missed the actual service itself; I just couldn't face the sadness in the eyes of all the friends and family. I didn't want to see Charles at this stage either, but I wanted to say farewell to the only woman, after my mother, that had made me feel so loved. I walked through the house avoiding Alex and Sean as they walked through towards a room in the very front of the house, soon followed by Charles in a wheel chair…had the bullet done extreme damage? Raven…or as she preferred now Mystique had accompanied me changing her appearance to blend in with the mutant fearing crowds, she disappeared following Charles from a distance.

As I finally walked out into the back of the house and out into the family graveyard, there were a few stragglers still walking back from the mausoleum at the very back of the yard. I walked slowly contemplating exactly what had happened, she'd been stood on the beach looking in horror at the oncoming missiles, she too stopped some of them and began exploding them in the air when a shot rang out…it was all over then. My fists clenched nearly breaking the flowers that I held in my hand, tears falling down my face. As I arrived at her coffin, I noticed the pocket watch she had always carried on her, placed atop the coffin. A picture of her lay next to with several flowers, the biggest bunch had come from Charles the card reading:

_Laura_

_I'm so sorry._

_You have always been there for me,_

_And when I should have been there for you,_

_I let you down._

_You were the best friend I could ever have hoped for._

_And I am one of the luckiest men to have ever had you as a lover._

_The times we spent together will be the most cherished memories I have._

_I am deeply sorry._

_With all my love,_

_Charles xx_

I didn't realise how affected I was by the card until I let out a choked sob. Her death had affected us all, especially Charles and I.

"What would you think of us? A bunch a sappy men? I can just picture you, wherever you are, screaming in frustration that it wasn't out fault, that we couldn't have stopped this." I said to no one in particular. "You'd say no one could stop that bullet…but I could have, if I wasn't being such a dick. I could have stopped it, before it ever touched you. I am sorry, really I am. I wish it was me, you deserve to be alive and I will avenge you."

"_**You know Charles told me that we have more in common than we know." She mused as she looked through the collection of books on the desk. "And I don't think he meant our taste in literature."**_

"_**How long have I known Charles? Well, awhile. We dated for a year or two." She answered smiling as she remembered her past times. "Until that stupid empath arrived and caused chaos for us all."**_

"_**This hatred for Shaw won't go away even if you do manage to kill him the hate won't fade away." She explained her eyes fierce as she stared at me. "And I should know."  
><strong>_

"_**Erik…I…I love you..." **_

A couple of weeks later

Charles' P.O.V

Things had settled slightly since Cuba, everyone still hated mutants, but there was no immediate threat since Shaw was dead. Erik was still rounding up mutants to fight against the humans; Laura had once told me she knew that Erik would turn against the humans, she knew of his struggle after all she had suffered because of ordinary humans too. I had finally realised where my place was in this battle, I was going to help mutants and at the same time make sure that the humans stayed safe. It was at this realisation that I started the Xavier Academy for Gifted Children, the campus for the school being my home; I had to use my degree for something didn't I.

"So, how many students do you think you'll have here, once you get the academy up and running?" Moira asked as she wheeled me around the grounds, I had started to come to terms with the likelihood of staying in this wheelchair for the rest of my life.

"As many as I can manage. Possibly more." I answered earning a smile off of her.

"You know, one day the government is gonna realize how lucky they were to have Professor X on their side." She said almost nostalgically, hopefully they would and soon protect the mutants.

"Oh! Yes, I suppose I am a real professor now, aren't I? Next thing you know, I'll be going bald." I mused smiling, Raven and Laura once joked about me being a professor…that seemed like an age ago… "We're still on the government's side, Moira. We're still G-men, just without the G."

"No. You're your own team, now. It's better. You're...X-Men." She replied laughing, X-men now that had a ring to it.

"Yes. I like the sound of that." I said laughing along with her; it was now coming to the more difficult part of the conversation…I really didn't want to lose another friend. "Moira, for us anonymity will be the first line of defence."

"I know. They can threaten me all they want, Charles. I'll never tell them where you are. Ever!" she said enthusiastically, it really broke my heart to do what I was about to do.

"I know you won't. I know." I murmured leaning close; kissing her as I erased me from her mind completely, all those times we'd shared together gone in a blink of an eye. I stopped the tears from falling as she began to slip into unconsciousness; she'd wake up back at home with no recollection of anything that had happened.

Erik's P.O.V

It was a couple of weeks into recruiting when I discovered the location of Emma Frost, the CIA had a strong hold on her, not strong enough for us to break through though.

"I know we've had our differences." I began; Emma was immediately sceptical of the offer I was about to make.

"Where's your telepath friend?" she asked looking at the others that stood in the hallway, probably noting the presence of remnants of her old team.

"Gone. Left a bit of a gap in my life, if I'm to be honest. I was rather hoping you would fill it. Join us." I explained over the couple of weeks, I had come to accept the loss of my friends, but I would fight for them, for the future we all wanted.

"Erik, I believe." She said as she waltzed over to me, accepting my offer. She would be a welcome member to our team. A telepath that rivalled Charles himself, especially now that the war was on the horizon, a war that the mutants would win, I will never be subjected to the cruelty that I felt in Auschwitz ever again and no mutant would have to feel the same cruelty.

"I prefer, Magneto."

Wilkes Manor

**_"Look grandpa, look what I found!" a young Laura exclaimed revealing a small butterfly to her grandfather._**

**_"Grandpa why did mummy die? Was it because of me?" _**

**_"You know someday, everyone will be equal." a teenaged Laura stated nodding her head as she packed her things ready for university, smiling over at her grandfather who stood in the doorway. "And if not I'll make it so."_**

William Wilkes walked through the graveyard passing the collapsed mausoleum where the family first encountered the powers of his granddaughter. He paused momentarily images of the past flashing before his eyes, that one rainy night had changed her life and led it to the present. He carried on passing countless of family members he remembered, finally reaching the biggest mausoleum in the yard. It only held one body but remembered four lives, the only other mutants in the family other than himself. His son; George Wilkes, his eldest grandson William George Wilkes, his youngest grandson Henry Wilkes and his oldest granddaughter Laura Ann Wilkes. He stopped briefly at the coffins that held only memories of the people they were for before stopping at the newest coffin. The flowers were starting to wilt, but he would not move them, they came from two men that he knew would not be back for a long time but had meant a lot to his granddaughter. One of the cards had fallen to the ground and he carefully picked it up it read:

_My love_

_My friend _

_Laura_

_It is truly a cruel world,_

_Fate has ripped you from me,_

_I am truly sorry._

_But I will fight for the world you should be in._

_I will avenge you._

_You truly meant a lot if not the world to me._

_All my love_

_Erik_

_Xxx_

He stopped momentarily, emotion building in his chest as he placed the card back on top of the coffin. Touching the pocket watch momentarily and smiling to himself.

"The time will come my child; the world will need you once more, and the people you love will join you. You are a great mutant."

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hi! Finally finished! Wow! It really took me awhile to write this chapter, it was quite difficult to write the notes left by Erik and Charles as well as the emotional scenes at the funeral. Well I hope you have enjoyed this fan fiction and if you have any questions etc. I will be happy to answer them, just simply send me a message. Thanks again for the support and sorry for the slow updating. Ciao! =D


	14. Rebirth

Disclaimer: You already know!

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><p><span>Mutant and Proud<span>

Chapter 14: Rebirth

Years had passed since Cuba everything had changed; people had changed, moved on and become completely different people. Some dwelled on the past and what it meant for the future, while others feared remembering and didn't want to even contemplate what was going to happen. A whole new war had gone and passed, and yet the world was still on the brink of another so soon after one had just finished. The world knew about mutants, something many feared and other admired, sure enough the lines would be drawn in a different war.

Banbury, Oxfordshire, 1973

_"Stop this Erik!"_

_"Erik!" _

_"Be the better man."_

_"Laura!"_

_"The two of you…and you too Raven…have made my life so…so happy…thank you."_

_"Don't talk like this!"_

_"I don't want to go."_

_"Don't leave me."_

_"I love you…"_

I woke with a start banging my head on a very solid surface, how odd my bed did not have a solid top. I shifted bumping against another wall so I turned to my right and sure enough there was another solid wall…I was in a box…a concrete box. And then it hit me, I had died back in Cuba all of it wasn't a dream, but why was I very much awake in what I assume was my coffin. After realising that I was in a coffin or more likely a concrete tomb, I began like so many others to panic and began pushing against the top which wouldn't budge; I began kicking wildly hoping that the concrete wasn't the best quality, but it didn't give. And suddenly a searing pain in my head stopped all action at all; I clutched my head curling up as best I could in this confined space closing my eyes. Was I going to die again? As suddenly as the pain had come it went once more and then the concrete began to crack and crumble away around me, I had forgotten about my powers.

The concrete floated around me before carefully landing either side of me, I began to rise up into a sitting position stretching out stiff limbs, luckily it wasn't brilliantly light so I wasn't blinded after however long I had been lying in that tomb. Around me lay some dying flowers and some newer ones, at least my grave had still been visited. Amongst the flowers lay some cards, some from old friends I hadn't been in contact with since I was a teenager, but two stood side by side, away from the rest of the poems and stories written about me and my life. Two from the two men I loved in life, Erik and Charles. I picked up the first which happened to be Charles':

_Laura_

_I'm so sorry._

_You have always been there for me,_

_And when I should have been there for you,_

_I let you down._

_You were the best friend I could ever have hoped for._

_And I am one of the luckiest men, to have ever had you as a lover._

_The times we spent together will be the most cherished memories I have._

_I am deeply sorry._

_With all my love,_

_Charles xx_

Tears brimmed in my eyes; I didn't want to think about how much my death must have hurt him. We'd spent so much time together over the years and gotten through many obstacles together. I'd left so many and hurt so many without so much as lifting a finger, why did I have to die? I took a deep breath and wiped away the tears in my eyes, before I turned to the next card, from Erik:

_My love_

_My friend_

_Laura_

_It is truly a cruel world,_

_Fate has ripped you from me,_

_I am truly sorry._

_But I will fight for the world you should be in._

_I will avenge you._

_You truly meant a lot if not the world to me._

_All my love_

_Erik_

_Xxx_

Once more tears pricked my eyes, we hadn't known each other as long as Charles and I had, but we still had a strong connection. The day on the beach, the day everything changed, he'd changed when he turned those missiles back on the ships. He was protecting us, but he was endangering more lives than the few that were on that beach. But Shaw had shaped the man he was, from his time in Auschwitz he had made him hate the world, but I saw another side of him a more caring man. But what had become of him? And of Charles? Emotions bubbled up inside me; sadness, fear and confusion. I clutched the cards to my chest as I began to cry swaying from side to side.

Minutes passed as I sat there cards to my chest rubble surrounding me, it was time to get out of this mausoleum. I wiped my eyes and began to stand, my legs were unsteady and I stumbled quite a bit, I nearly fell flat on my face but I caught myself in the last second. A small silver object caught my eye as I was facing the ground; I shifted some of the rubble and grabbed the object. It was a small pocket watch the face broken and much of the back was broken too, but it was still ticking. I went to put it in a pocket before realising I was wearing a black dress, that unfortunately didn't have any pockets. Instead I held onto in along with the cards and began moving for the exit, which hopefully would be open. And for me luck was on my side, I began to step down the stairs the light began to get more intense making me shield my eyes. I was outside in the family graveyard where so long ago I had found out I had powers, which still seemed to be in working order.

The house I'd grown up in hadn't changed; the graveyard was still unkempt with vines growing up the sides of the mausoleum and weeds covering tombstones. I made my way over to the entrance to the gardens slowly but surely stumbling quite often, as I made it to the gate my vision began to blur and images began to swirl round the garden along with echoes in my head of conversations.

"_I'm sorry."_

"_Charles you could have done nothing more."_

"_I could have saved her. She could be standing here right now, but she isn't because of me!"_

"_Calm down."_

"_Calm down! Why should I calm down? My friend is gone and you expect me to calm down?! She shouldn't have died! She shouldn't have…"_

The voice of Charles screaming out those words swirled in my head before I went away and was replaced with yet more broken conversations from other people.

"_What would you think of us? A bunch of sappy men? I can just picture you, wherever you are, screaming in frustration that it wasn't our fault, that we couldn't have stopped this."_

"_You'd say no one could stop that bullet…but I could have, if I wasn't being such a dick. I could have stopped it, before it ever touched you. I am sorry, really I am. I wish it was me, you deserve to be alive and I will avenge you."_

Erik's voice echoed around as if he was with me right now, speaking to me as if I was there. These weren't my memories, these were theirs of what they had said, screamed, shouted, and sobbed…these voices, these images where from my funeral.

"_Killing will not in any way bring her back Erik!"_

"_She deserves to live more than anyone in this world, they took away from me, they took her away from us Charles! I will make sure she didn't die in vain."_

"_Killing will not help; she wouldn't have wanted you to follow this path. She tried to stop you on that beach and I will stop you if you decide to do this."_

They were no longer friends, they'd turned on each other…would it have been different if I hadn't have died that day? I'm sure Erik wouldn't have wanted to kill so many people…but he had tried that day to destroy all those ships which would have taken so many lives. My vision came back and the blurry images and voices stopped, what had just happened? I'd never been able to see the past, without the person being in front of me and very open minded so I could read their mind. I managed to make it through the gardens and to the backdoor of the house, without any more weird visions happening. The door was locked so I had no other choice than to knock, I wouldn't be able to make it to the front door without falling over; I was exhausted even though I had been dead for however long I had been. The door opened revealing my grandfather who enveloped me in a tight hug.

"You've come back to us." He whispered pulling me into the house and sitting me down at the table. "There is a lot you need to know, you've been gone for eleven years my child."

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><p><span>Author's notes:<span>

Hey! Sorry for not updating this sooner, but I've only just seen X-Men Days of Future Past…really should have seen it earlier, but my sister really wanted to see Edge of Tomorrow, which is quite good but not as good as the X-Men film. Anyway not really into the film as of yet, but I guess I really needed to bring her back into the land of the living to continue on with this OC story…or it wouldn't really be a great story. Thanks so much for the reviewing and such, it means a lot to hear that you like the story and there is more to come. Well anyway off to write some more of this although the next update will probably be sometime around next Tuesday or maybe Thursday as I've got voluntary work to be doing, but hopefully I will still be able to get some writing done as it was really fun to pick up this story once again. And I will also be continuing Ghost with some of the plot of the film…but that will probably be more dealing with the before the start of the film and after the end of the film. So a lot of writing for me to be doing, and a whole summer to do it in, well I will leave it here, hope you have enjoyed this brand spanking new chapter.


	15. Eleven Years

Disclaimer: You already know!

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><p><span>Mutant and Proud<span>

Chapter 15: Eleven Years

Banbury, Oxfordshire, 1973

Grandfather ushered me into the house and helped me up the stairs back to my old room, it hadn't been touched since the last time I had seen it, and everything was still exactly where I had left it. He left me as he went through the door to the adjoining bathroom and proceeded to run a bath. I felt out of place, like I didn't belong here at all, I felt as though I was needed elsewhere but all I wanted to do was curl up in my comfy bed. I didn't want to hear what I had missed out on in the eleven years I had been in that concrete box, I didn't want to know what I had put the others through; all the sadness and heartbreak. Grandfather returned from the bathroom holding a towel in his hands.

"You'll be alright?" he asked as I stood up and took the towel off of him, I was still slightly shaky on my legs but relying on help all the time was not going to make it any better. There wouldn't always be someone there to help me stand up.

"Y-yeah." I replied my voice croaky from being out of use for eleven years, eventually everything would be back to normal…well I'd be able to stand properly, I wouldn't be achy from head to toe and my voice wouldn't crack every time I opened my mouth. And hopefully my powers would settle down and I wouldn't have the weird episode I had outside in the graveyard.

"We will catch you up afterwards." He stated pulling me into a hug. "It is good to have you back."

After he left the room I ventured into the bathroom where a steaming hot bath awaited me, I removed my dusty black dress someone had picked out for me to be buried in and stepped into the bath. I sank down into the water my hair fanning out behind me, it felt so good after eleven years of being…well dead. It was weird thinking about being dead and then being brought back alive, it felt as though this was all a dream and I would wake up back in Charles' mansion with Erik beside me. Thinking about the past and everything that had happened was difficult, everyone would have moved on with their lives by now, doing whatever they felt was right to do. I traced scars that hadn't healed; one on my knee from when I was a little girl and I fell down and stone lodged itself in my knee, the scar from the bullet that had killed me eleven years ago on my side and the brand Shaw had inflicted on my arm.

After what seemed an eternity lying in the water and thinking over every small detail that had happened from meeting Charles at Oxford, finding other mutants, finding Erik and losing it all in a single minute. I got dressed and made my way downstairs to the joint kitchen and dining room, where grandfather had made a breakfast of; bacon, scrambled eggs, toast and sausage. I didn't realised how hungry I was until I saw the delicious meal; I devoured every last scrap and had seconds much to my grandfather's delight.

"Feeling better?" he asked with a grin on his face, there wasn't much better than being back alive.

"Better than being dead." I joked grabbing another slice of toast, it all still felt surreal I couldn't have possibly come back from the dead, no one came back from being dead…well no one I had known of in the years I had been alive...god knows what happened when I was in that concrete box. "What have I missed?"

"A lot my child." He replied and then began to tell me what had happened over the eleven years I had been dead for. So much had happened since I had died; the Beatles had become mega stars both in the UK and USA, even making and animated film, man had landed on the moon in 1969 and shortly after Apollo 11 had achieved this Apollo 17 was the last human spaceflight to the moon. President John F. Kennedy had been assassinated as well as his brother Robert F. Kennedy, war had begun in Vietnam and was drawing to a close, and this had caused many protests in both the United States and the United Kingdom. Nixon was the current President of the United States and Edward Heath was the current Prime Minister of the UK. Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, Kenya, Zanzibar, Malawi, Malta, Zambia, The Gambia, Guyana, Botswana, Barbados, Mauritius, Tonga, and Qatar had all gained independence from the United Kingdom. The Troubles in Ireland continued with IRA bombings and shootings on the streets in Northern Ireland. Civil Rights acts were signed outlawing segregation, while race riots occurred. The Seychelles had been created; England won the World Cup in 1966, C.S Lewis died although the news was overshadowed by the assassination of JFK.

"I have missed a lot." I sighed and yet grandfather had more to tell me. There was scandal in the Houses of Parliament called the 'Profumo affair' something to do with politicians and spies. Music was on the up and up with the debut albums of both Black Sabbath and The Rolling Stones, as well as the introduction of music festivals; Glastonbury and Reading. Television had also taken off with the introduction of Doctor Who, That Was the Week That Was and Monty Python; however cigarette companies were no longer aloud to advertise on television. Miners went on strike for seven weeks, the death penalty was outlawed, and the channel tunnel connecting France and the UK began construction. There were horrid murders of children up north in Yorkshire called the 'Moors Murders' the perpetrators Myra Hindley and Ian Brady who had murdered as many as eleven children were sentenced to life imprisonment, some of the children had yet to be found. However there was some happier news, Queen Elizabeth II had given birth to her fourth child Prince Edward.

"Now that world history is over, what happened to Charles, Erik, Raven and the others after I died?" I asked learning about what I had missed in the world was interesting and it was nice to see how far the world had come; space travel had been accomplished if only to the moon and back. But I wanted to know what had happened with the people closest to me.

"Well as for Raven and the other mutants that were brought together I cannot say for sure what happened." He began I guess it wouldn't concern him a lot about those who he never really met or saw much of. "As far as I know with Charles, he lost the ability to walk after Cuba, a bullet in his spine."

"That's terrible…how could that happen?"

"Erik." He replied how could Erik cause that? Sure they were fighting over Erik controlling the missiles to turn them back on countless sailors on those ships. But for Erik to cause a bullet to end up taking away Charles' ability to walk seemed so far-fetched. "And as for Erik, imprisonment I hear for assassinating President Kennedy."

"What?!" I exclaimed how could that have happened? For Erik to be behind the assassination of a President and cause Charles' so much pain seemed absolutely ridiculous to me. Had he changed so much since Cuba? Since killing Shaw? If this had all happened and was completely true, I really didn't know Erik at all. And why hadn't Charles' done anything to stop Erik? Or had he? "I need to see them."

"Seeing Erik will be impossible, Charles may be even as difficult." Grandfather replied getting up out of his chair and picking up a set of car keys. "However you being alive is also impossible."

"To see Charles first then, and see what the hell happened while I was dead." I stated getting up out of my chair and all of a sudden more images flashed through my head accompanied by the horrid pain ringing in my head. I collapsed to the floor; the table, cutlery and walls vibrating as I relived whatever snippets of memories I was seeing.

"_She's not my child she's a monster!"_

"_She is your child, she is gifted."_

"_Gifted?! She can move things without touching them, she's not gifted, if she was gifted she'd be able to draw."_

"_This is a gift."_

"_This is the Devil's work! This goes against God. She is an abomination."_

And just like the time before it vanished suddenly and I was left confused on the floor looking around at some of the broken dishes that had shattered.

"What's happening to me?" I asked as grandfather helped me up from the floor.

"You're re-adjusting, you're powers seem to have come back stronger."

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Hi! Getting back into writing this once more, so I should be updating rather regularly although next Thursday to Sunday will be more difficult as I won't be at the computer much on those days. Anyway it was rather fun looking up all the stuff that Laura had missed out on, if anyone wants any more information on any of them I will be happy to give you some information. Next chapter will be the start of the film and Charles' reaction to her being alive as well as her dealing with her out of control memory reliving powers.


	16. Xavier Mansion

Disclaimer: You already know!

* * *

><p><span>Mutant and Proud<span>

Chapter 16: Xavier Mansion

Charles' mansion had changed what once was a luxurious retreat had become uncared for, vines grew around the gates and shrubs were left to grow to wild shapes. Did he even live here anymore? Grandfather had told me he was still here, that he had started a school for mutants, but if that was true where were all the students? I approached the front door which had been left open…how strange even when we had used the place for training the door nor the gates were left open, in case any unwanted people happened across us. As I came closer to the door I began to hear pieces of an argument, one of the voices I immediately recognised:

"Now I remember you, and I'll tell you exactly what you told me the last time." Charles shouted. "Fuck off."

Maybe I should come back later, when he is in a much better mood, but then again it was better to get this over and done with as soon as possible, the longer I waited to reveal myself the harder it was going to be. I know Charles has gone through so much, seeing me again will bring forth a lot of emotion…well I'd hope if he cared about me before I died then he'd be overcome with emotion to see me alive again. My hand hesitated on the door, he may reject me altogether thinking I'm an impostor or maybe he'd think I was Raven…though I' d doubt he'd think Raven would do this to him. I took a deep breath shaking all the possible outcomes of what was about to happen from my head and pushed the door slightly more open propelling myself into the main hall. Charles stood facing away from me his foot on the first step of the staircase, Hank was near the study facing Charles and the man I did not recognise, the one that Charles was arguing with faced away from the door as well.

"Is this a bad time?" I asked…I didn't know what had come over me, what kind of lame line was that? After eleven years of being dead and all I had come up with to say was that, not anything meaningful or emotional, but something that anyone would have said if they had come across this situation and needed to talk to one of them. All three of them turned to face me, the anger immediately left Charles' face to be replaced with a look of shock and awe…which was then replaced with anger almost immediately.

"Raven if this is some sort of sick joke…how could you? Did Erik put you up to this?" he yelled his face the picture of pure rage; he quickly removed himself from the staircase and grabbed my arm. "Change back right now!"

"Charles! Calm down this instant! Listen to me, it really is me!"

"No, it can't be you!"

"Raven stop this, you've proven whatever point you're trying to make don't torment him." Hank added as he came over trying to pry Charles off of me. What had happened while I was away? Why would they think that Raven would do this? She was a friend, a good friend, she would never try and harm Charles even less torment him.

"I'm not Raven…I don't know how to explain this but I'm not Raven!" I yelled and then the pain came back once more but it wasn't as severe as last time and no images flashed in front of my eyes but glass began to smash around us, "I don't know…I don't know."

Things began to levitate around us as the walls and ground began to shake. The pain ever present in my head, a beating drum that seemed to never end. I needed to regain control over these powers to once again be able to enact them at the moments I chose to. Not like this, I didn't want them to appear at random paralysing me with pain, helpless to stop it all. Someone could easily be hurt or worse killed because I couldn't control what was happening.

"What's happening?"

"Laura! Laura you can control this, regain control!" Charles shouted, he'd finally realised it was me after all and not another mutant pretending to be me, there was no other mutant we had come across that could do what Raven did as well as mimic the power, if there was such a mutant they were one powerful being. "Focus!"

"I…I can't…"

The pain seemed to get worse as things began smashing, colliding and flying out of control. I couldn't stop this, I couldn't even think straight and it put Charles in danger along with Hank and the stranger. Just as the pain seemed to peak my world faded to black.

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><p><span>Author's Notes:<span>

Sorry for not updating in a long time, and sorry for the shortness of this chapter I have been rather busy of recent, but hopefully I should be able to write bits and pieces of chapters every weekday and put it all together of a weekend depending if I'm not completely busy the weekends and in about 5 weeks I will be free weekdays however I will have revision to do for exams in January but I will more than likely be able to update a lot between November and January. Hope you have enjoyed this chapter and I shall hopefully be updating again soon.


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